Bellatrix Fanfic (Updated)
by 1spiffydeatheater
Summary: AU Bellatrix fic. From my deviant account of the same name. Updated 11/23/17 for readability.
1. Chapter 1

**Alternate Universe:** _Harry Potter was killed by Lord Voldemort in the graveyard during the Tri Wizard tournament. After playing with Potter's corpse for several moments, making sure that he was dead beyond a shadow of a doubt. The Dark Lord then paraded the boy's body through the streets leaving him on the Ministry's doorstep, along with his dark mark. He then went and freed his most faithful servants from Azkaban. His next task was clear, he must kill Dumbledore as he was now the only wizard who could possibly stand in his way. While he plotted against his last real treat he sent his death eaters to begin recruiting followers so he could pick up where he had left off 13 years ago._

It had felt like an eternity locked away waiting for her master to return, but as his most loyal servant, Bellatrix knew that her Lord would come for her as soon as he could. That single thought had sustained her for the last 13 years that she had spent locked away on that cold, hopeless island. The last few months had felt different, somewhere deep-down hiding within her madness she knew that the winds were beginning to change. Her once faded and scarred dark mark had slowly begun to return to the jet black it was the day the Dark Lord had given it to her. It could only be a matter of time before she was reunited with her master and rewarded for her faithful servitude. An eerily calm clarity had begun to fill her sick little mind, the dark mark on her arm burning strongly. For a moment, she was sure she had been imagining the sensation that danced along her forearm like she had so many times. Then, a second sharp sting rippled over her mark. A sharp cackling howl escaped her lips, her eyes wide and alert, she knew her Lord was coming. Could it really be? Or had the years of torture and abuse finally driven her to a mental state that she would never return from. She had not had time to give it any more thought before she heard it. There was a large explosion, the sound vibrating through her bones as the bricks at the end of her cell fell away into the sea below. There was a rush of cool sea air that blasted through the gaping hole in the wall. She shivered, she could not believe her eyes, nor did she have time to fully process the scene as she crept forward to where the wall of her cell used to stand. As she got closer to where her cell now dropped into the sea she saw the familiar black silhouettes dancing around the prison, a menacing gleeful noise erupted from deep inside her. It had come from somewhere she did not even know existed anymore, as she danced gleefully around the cell. This was it, her master had come for her.

Only moments had seemed to have passed before Bellatrix, and over a dozen, other death eaters now stood in the foyer of the Malfoy's mansion. She was free, at last, to continue serving her Dark Lord. As they looked around, waiting for what was to come, Bella heard a familiar voice cry out as footsteps rapidly approached her. She swung around quickly looking for where the voice had come from when she saw none other than she sweet baby sister, Narcissa rushing forward to her – tears in her eyes.

"Cissy!?" came Bellatrix's hoarse voice.

From years of not using it properly, the words felt strange in her mouth, but she had a feeling that a lot of things would feel strange for a while. This feeling was confirmed as Narcissa wrapped her arms around her sister happily crying, babbling about how much she had missed her and how happy she was to have her home. It took a moment before Bellatrix was able to close her arms around her sister's small frame, awkwardly hugging her in return.

Before Bellatrix had been expected to say anything Narcissa's husband and several other death eater's had joined them and Lucius's voice broke the silence

"We will be taking you all to be cleaned up before the Dark Lord arrives for our meeting in the morning. If you will please follow me to your rooms," his words were clear and precise.

The mass of people slowly began to exit the room, following Lucius into other parts of the mansion. Before Bellatrix could move, her sister grabbed her hand kindly.

"I'll take care of you," Narcissa whispered sweetly to her sister as she lead her away from everyone else into another part of the house.

It was not long before she found herself ushered into what must be her sisters own room. With her loving sister's help, it was not long before Bella was in fresh new robes and cleaned up, to the best of Narcissa's abilities. The years of wear on her body would not be so easily removed, but at least, she was clean and in something that did not stink of her cell. Before they had time to catch up, or say much at all, Lucius strode into the room. Obviously, this was his room as well.

"Narcissa, dear, I believe it is time for you to escort your sister to her own room. We all need our rest before our meeting in the morning," he spoke neatly to his wife. Then looking a Bellatrix, who was much more recognizable in her current state, "It is good to see you again Bella."

She flashed a maddening smile across her full lips but before she could say anything her sister was quickly guiding her out of the room and down the hall to the bedroom nearest to them. Narcissa smiled as she led her sister into her new room, giving her another tight embrace.

"Get some rest and I will see you first thing in the morning, my dearest Bella." Her words were soft and kind as they always had been, something Bella had not heard in so long. As her sister stepped back and began to exit the room she turned and looked at her one last time, "I am so glad you are back," she said once again a smile on her lips before she finally left.

Bellatrix was thankful for her sister, more now than ever before. Her head was spinning and was glad she had not been asked any questions about her years locked away in her cold dark cell. Her small form gently fell into the large bed that set centered on the far wall of the room. Her eyes closed slowly, her mind slowly beginning to empty. The only thought that actively played through her mind was her anticipation of her reunion with her master in the morning. It had been 13 years, surely one more night would not kill her.

A wicked smile sat on her lips as she drifted off to sleep, but her sleep would not be a peaceful one. As it had been every night since she had been locked away on that damp island her mind flooded with fears. Her deepest darkest fears came to life in her mind, memories of her torture adding to the horrors that unfolded every time she drifted off. She was awoken, not by the sounds of her own manic screams that filled the air, but by her sweet sister who was holding her tightly trying to calm her down.

"Bella, Bella, Bella," Narcissa cooed in her sister's ear, "It's alright! You're home, and you're safe."

Bellatrix could hear her sister's words but it took a while before she was able to comprehend what was going on. Once the words had processed in her head she moved her arms to hold onto her sister. She was away from her cell and the dementors, why had the nightmares still invaded her mind tonight? Maybe it would always be like this, she thought, after all, she was never supposed to have walked away from her island prison. Her breathing had slowly returned to normal, her sister's hand stroking her thick head of hair soothingly. Bellatrix's head fell to rest on her sister's shoulder, as she snuggled into her.

"Will you stay here with my tonight Cissy?" she said hoarsely, her large dark eyes looking up at her sister.

Narcissa sighed softly, her motherly instinct was so evident, "Of course my sweet Bella," she said with a small smile holding her sister as she drifted back to sleep. She could not even begin to fathom the horrors that her poor Bella had endured while locked away.

Narcissa was lucky really to be only the wife of a death eater and not a full-fledged death eater like her sister was. It was perfect while she was pregnant and bringing up young Draco during the first Wizarding Wars though now that her son was older she had a feeling their Lord would be asking more of her family this time around. She would never be as enthusiastic as Bella was, her obsessive need to please her master was almost unfathomable. These were some of Narcissa's last thoughts as she too fell asleep.

When Bellatrix woke up again it was not out of panic, there were no screams or cold sweats, just the soft stream of sunlight dancing in through the window. She felt her sister still close to her, her arms wrapped around her softly. She really is the sweetest little thing, she thought to herself as she moved, slowly waking her up.

"Cissy," she whispered softly, her voice probably permanently hoarse.

Her sister jumped slightly, as her eyes opened slowly. "Are you alright Bella?" Narcissa said sleepily.

"Yes, yes I'm alright. Thank you for staying with my Cissy." Bellatrix replied as sweetly as she could muster.

"Always," cooed her sister as she rose from the bed. Narcissa knew that this was her cue to leave. After all, this time, part of her never wanted to leave her sister again, but she knew better than that. "I'll see you downstairs later," she added as she moved to the door once again leaving Bella on her own.

Bella smiled, as sweetly as Bella could ever smile. She was going to be alright. She had her family back, and soon she would feel her dark mark burn and she would be once again reunited with her master from who she would never part. After all, her Lord was her one true love, her one and only master and she would die before she was torn from his side again.


	2. Chapter 2

As Bellatrix was getting ready, she had to look presentable for her master after all, her dark mark suddenly seared into her arm. Her eyes widened madly a sick smile dancing upon her lips, her heart was racing, this was all she had thought about since they were parted and now, after all this time, her only desire was being fulfilled. She moved her long sleeve up, away from her mark which was writhing madly on her flesh, she then licked it sickly and disapparated in a flash of black smoke.

She opened her eyes to find herself standing in the Malfoy's formal dining room, her eyes darted around frantically searching for the icy gaze she craved above all else. She saw the Malfoy's, Draco included and a few other death eaters, some she knew others she did not. It was hard to believe how long she had been locked away from the world. Then standing on the far side of the room she spotted him, her one and only master. Her large eyes caught his gaze and an evil smile painted across his face.

"My most loyal Bellatrix," he hissed his arms stretched out.

She could not believe this, her master had returned, and he called for her, and her alone. She knew that he must know how she longed for him, how faithful she had been to him all of these years.

"My Lord," she cried rushing over to him, instinctually bowing before him. Her eyes met his once more, the most evil of all smiles still plastered to his face.

"Come now Bella," he hissed his arms still outreached.

She could not believe what she was seeing, she had longed for his closeness for so long a desire that he had never indulged her. She stood slowly approaching her master taking care as to not overstep her boundaries. She wrapped her arms around his robbed figure moving closer as he placed his arms around her. Bellatrix had never been so happy in her entire life, she could not even fathom what was happening. She kept her eyes on him so she knew when to move away, for she was pretty sure that without that she would never let go of him. She stepped back, still almost in a state of shock, smiling up at her beloved master.

"Thank you, my Lord," she said quietly unaware that everyone was now staring at them.

The Dark Lord knew, though, he knew just about everything, to be frank. He raised his head, breaking eye contact with Bellatrix and looking up around the room.

"Shall we begin!" he hissed loudly so that everyone could here.

Voldemort took his seat at the head of the table, death eaters casually sitting down in various seats around the table. Bella looked almost nervously around, she had always been her master's right hand but was she still. As she began to stride over to the table, near where her sister sat with her family the Dark Lord looked up to her

"Bella," he said gesturing to the seat to his right. Her smile widened as she danced gleefully over to him and sat down.

Today was better than almost any dream she had ever had and while she would always crave more from her master, she was shocked at his rewarding behavior. Should she be, though? After all, she was his most loyal, even he had said so. She was exactly where she belonged, the right hand of the Dark Lord himself. She barely had time to glance around the large oak table before her master began to speak.

"My faithful servants," he began regally, "Today we are finally reunited with some of our most loyal death eaters. The death eaters who were not afraid to publicly swear allegiance to me and suffer for their services." He looked around the room, his eyes resting on Bellatrix for maybe a moment longer than they should have before looking out again over his followers. "Now that we are all back together and the fowl Potter boy is dead we can pick up where we left off so long ago." He paused only briefly before continuing, "I will be sending most of you out to help recruit more followers, as you can all see that our numbers are far lower than they were 13 years ago." He started naming off individual death eaters and giving them recruiting locations, most were the same as they had so long ago. "Draco and Severus I have a very important task for you both, you shall be briefed on this tomorrow."

Bellatrix stared wickedly across the table. Snape had been a traitor and Draco was only a boy! Surely she would do better. The thought only stayed in her mind for a moment, she knew better than to question the Dark Lord. She watched intently, waiting for her master to call on her services.

"I would like to Thank the Malfoy's for opening their home to us and taking care of you all last night," he said as Lucius bowed his head to his master, "Now that is all for today, you may leave!"

At his final words most began to disapparate, off to begin their various missions. Bellatrix looked up longingly at her master wondering what wonderful mission he had for his lieutenant. Before she dared to speak Voldemort looked down at her, the same sick smile on his face.

"My dearest Bellatrix, do not worry your sick little head, you will stay here and train. You have been caged for too long," he hissed.

Bella bowed her head, "As my Lord commands," her words almost seductive.

As she looked back at him she noticed his eyes were now on Narcissa as she moved over to her sister. Soon her hands were on Bellatrix's shoulders, her head bowing as she made eye contact with the Dark Lord.

"My Lord," she whispered submissively.

"Thank you for letting us use your house, please do pass this on to your husband," their master hissed.

"Yes my Lord, you are most welcome my Lord," Narcissa said her head bowed.

Bellatrix could not believe her sister was not more honored by this and before she could stop herself he words spilled out of her mouth.

"My Lord it is the greatest honor that you use our family's home, there is no higher pleasure." He words prideful, even though she had been away for many years this, after all, was her families.

"No higher pleasure," The Dark Lord said with a pause, "Bellatrix, this means a great deal, coming from you."

Bellatrix's heart flew, her master's words more than made up for the years she spent waiting for him.

"My Lord knows my words are always truthful," she purred to him.

He nodded his head at her "I must be off, I will see you all later," he hissed before disapparating.

Bellatrix's heart continued to pound madly in her chest, the smile unfading from her face. She had almost forgot that her sister was there until she heard her speak.

"Bella let's go get some breakfast. I'm sure you can hardly remember the last time you had a decent meal."

She looked up as her sister moved away from her, signaling that she was to follow her. She did, unaware of how hungry she actually was. Bellatrix thought very hard, trying to remember the last time she remembered eating but many of her memories before her capture were blurred and so very far away.

They arrived at the Malfoy's much smaller informal dining room, which was still large enough for nearly a dozen to sit around. Draco and his father sat at the head on the far side, Narcissa moving to sit next to her husband. Bella stuck close to her sister sitting next to her. Her eyes continued around the table seeing several faces she recognized but none that she could easily put a name to. The majority of her memories were still so hazy.

Thankfully breakfast was served before anyone had tried to speak to her, she still was not sure how well conversations would go at this particular point in time. She still needed time to adjust to life outside her cage. She ate with a fury that she had never experienced before, she had never been so hungry in all of her life. Shure, she was "fed" while in prison, but not properly and certainly nothing as wonderful as the Malfoy's house-elves cooked up. She ate until she could not swallow another bite, she looked over to her sister who simply smiled at her.


	3. Chapter 3

Her first full day at the Malfoy's went smoothly, almost too smoothly. Bellatrix had spent the majority of the day with her sister, attempting to feel normal. What was normal after 13 years in a cage? Although most believed she was mad long before she was locked away, her many years in Azkaban had only driven her deeper into her own bloodthirsty insanity. Her sweet sister was so kind to her, catching her up on everything that she missed over the years, trying to create a sense of normalcy. Then there was a quiet knock on the door, Bella spun around in her seat, her eyes wide while her sister greeted whoever it was at the entrance. A tall man, with long wavy brown hair entered. He seemed so familiar but not as he looked now. Just then her sister spoke.

"Ah, Rodolphus! I wondered how long it would be before you popped in." Her words were a little cooler than they were with Bellatrix, but that was to be expected.

His name, she knew his name, but it had been so long since she had heard it.

"Hello," he said softly to the two of them as they wandered over nearer to Bella.

As he got closer she could see his face and his dark eyes. He was her husband! How could she forget something like that! Although it was really nothing more than an agreement made a long time ago, he was still her husband. Her duty to her family and his blind obedience to her master and herself was the only reason she had allowed him to take her as his wife. She remembered him so clearly now, her head was finally beginning to wake.

"Rodolphus, my dearest husband!" her words, slightly harsh and twisted.

She had never been very kind to him, which seem to suit him just fine. He had and would always love her more than she ever could, for they were both aware that her heart would always belong to their master – even if it was never reciprocated.

Rodolphus reached for Bellatrix's hand, she shuddered slightly at his touch but allowed him to gently grasp it in his own and raise it to his lips kissing it ever so gently. He was ever so loyal she thought as she smiled wickedly up at him. They had both been in Azkaban, sentenced for the same crimes, but were kept nowhere near each other. Maybe if they had been their relationship would have changed, but it had not so there was no use thinking about it. \

"My most loyal husband," she began, a cackle in her voice, "Why have you interrupted us?" Her words were almost harsh, but that was the only way she knew how to be with him.

Her sister shot her a disapproving look, she never cared for how she treated her husband. Unlike Bella, Narcissa loved her husband and married him for that reason, she would never understand the relationship between Bellatrix and Rodolphus. She never had, and she clearly never would. It was okay, though, Rodolphus knew his placed, and he was happy enough the way things were.

"Lucius sent me, dinner is almost ready," his words were soft, unhurt by anything Bella had said. She knew he had not forgotten their arrangement.

"Very well," Bellatrix began sharply, "Cissy shall we go?" her eyes now on her sister who simply nodded before standing to her feet.

She left the room, walking next to her sister as Rodolphus followed behind. It was almost like things were exactly as they had left them.

Dinner went smoothly enough, she was once again too hungry to stop and chat amongst the rest of their company. She kept to herself, which was rather unusual, but she listened to everything. Not much was said but she knew that she was not yet in a position to be herself. She was still unsure of what was going on, she needed to bide her time and absorb as much as she could so she could be her most valuable to her master. As everyone began to finish their dinners she stood from the table.

"I'll see you later," she said to the table, her hand giving her sister's a slight squeeze.

Her sister's eyes looked up, still worried about her, but Bella needed time to herself. She strode away from the table and out to the rest of the house. She knew the library was around here somewhere and that seemed as good a place as any to try and get a grip on her new life.

The longer she wondered around the more familiar her soundings became. It was not long before she found the large double doors that lead to the Malfoy's extensive library. She pushed open the doors and quickly found a large green high-backed chair to plop herself down in. She curled her legs up to her chest, her eyes wide as she tried to process the last 24 hours. She had sat like this almost constantly while in her cell, but never so comfortably. She was quickly lost in her thoughts, growing more unaware of her surroundings. She felt safe alone for the first in so long, no one would dare disturb her. Her mind was racing and she quickly lost all notion of what was around her. Then her train of thought was quickly broken by cold icy words.

"My most faithful Bellatrix," her master hissed. Bellatrix jumped, her eyes wildly darting around until they settled on the form of her Lord.

"My Lord," she said bowing her head. She was shocked that he would be the one to find her hiding place. "How can I be of service my Lord," she added humbly, for there was nothing she would not gladly do for her Lord.

He smiled down at her, his sick, beautiful smile.

"My dear you have already done so much for me," he hissed. Bella's face blushed quickly, complimented by her wonderful master.

"Anything for you, my Lord," she replied trying not to sound too thrilled with herself.

"You will begin training again in the morning though I doubt it will take you long to be back to your old self," he hissed, sounding ever so pleased with her. "You, after all, are my most talented death eater."

She had always known that she was a very capable witch, but to hear such praise from her master was almost too much. She leaned closer to him, always longing for the closeness she knew that she would never be granted.

"You flatter me, my Lord," she began as humbly as she could muster through her joy. "I cannot wait to be doing as you please, master." Her words honest as always, a smile resting on her full red lips.

"Always so willing, Bella. I am lucky to have such a loyal lieutenant."

She blushed once again as he spoke. Had he changed or had he always been so flattering to her? She could not remember, nor did she have time to think more into the matter before he continued.

"I told you long ago that your loyalty would not go unrewarded. Though thinking of a reward worthy enough for your loyalty is proving to more difficult than I care to admit."

The Dark Lord's smooth words came as a shock to Bellatrix, she knew that she would be rewarded, but she had always assumed that her reward would be her life and continued service to her master. He drew closer to her, watching how much she loved it. She knew that he could see her every emotion, especially now that her mind had been so badly abused. She was talented at Occlumency but it had been many years since she was strong enough to block her mind, especially from her master. He smiled wickedly down at her, so close they were almost touching. Bellatrix longed to touch her master but knew better than dare to try such an act. Especially while he was so pleased with her. Her body shivered slightly, the anticipation for what he would say next nearly unbearable. Her eyes stayed locked on his, her smile unwavering from her lips.

She took a slight breath, "My Lord, no reward is necessary. Service to you has always been reward enough," her voice was steadily growing stronger the more she was using it to actually speak, her words coming more and more easily.

"This is true, but I feel as though you deserve something. You are my most loyal, and that shall not go unrewarded." The Dark Lords pale hand met Bella's face, only for a moment, "I will think of something Bellatrix. Until then, I will see you in the morning," he hissed before disapparating leaving Bellatrix frozen in her spot absolutely speechless.

Her master was too good to her and with that she leaped from her chair and flew up to her room. She would need to sleep so she would be ready for whatever he threw at her tomorrow. Now was not the time to displease her Lord.


	4. Chapter 4

Before her nightmares had time to wake her, Bellatrix felt the sharp sting of her dark mark. Her eyes flew open, this was it. A twisted smile played on her lips, as she pulled her wand out. The first flick of her wand found her dressed and the next she was gone, headed for wherever her master had called her to.

It was only a moment before she was standing in a large, dark room. Her eyes darted around quickly, trying to decide where she was and who might be hiding in the darkness. Her eyes were quite adept at seeing in low light, at least, there was one thing she could be thankful for. She saw a large figure moving swiftly in the far end of the room, her smile grew, her wand out and ready. She had been a skilled duelist, easily one of her master's best. Her body ached for the chance to torture and kill, her bloodlust unquenchable.

"I see you," she called out, her voice echoing eerily through the room. The silence lasted only a moment before her Master's cool voice called out to her.

"Very good Bellatrix." He flew through the room and in a moment was standing before her, black smoke vanishing as he came into focus.

"My Lord," she said softly, her head bowed.

He smiled "I assume that you still remember how to duel?" His words wicked, but very much exciting.

"Of course, my Lord," she said excitedly. It had been a long time since she had dueled with her master. After all, she was only as good as she was because her master had spent years training her, a true product of the Dark Lord's genius.

The dark lord bowed to her his wand out and ready. Bellatrix bowed and as soon as they were looking at each other red light shot from her wand, she was not going to waste any time. Her smile was unfading as her master blocked the spell her want erupting with red light before he had time to cast himself. She laughed madly as their duel continued, no words were needed as they cast and deflected whatever the other had thrown at them. She had not felt this good in so long, she was madly dancing around as the duel continued unable to hide her glee. At the last moment she switched up her tactic, almost boring of the duel at this point. Bellatrix casted a shield charm just as her master's spell was to hit her, sending the bright red light flying back at him. The Dark Lord step to the side just in time smiling.

"I see you have not lost your touch Bella," his snake like words filled her with pride, "Now I suppose I should allow you some fun." His words were wicked, Bella hanging on every syllable.

"Thank you, my Lord," her words excited and proud; he was truly a great master.

He turned and started walking to another part of the room, Bellatrix following at his heels. She was fairly certain they were in the Malfoy's cellar, it was most certainly the safest place to duel. This also meant this was where her master was keeping prisoners, maybe even prisoners that he would allow Bella to play with.

Bound in a far back corner was a badly beaten young man, Bellatrix had never seen him before but clearly he had done something to offend her master. The fact that he was not dead yet spoke volumes. She looked eagerly up at her master, her eyes wide with excitement barely able to contain the anticipation.

"My dear Bellatrix, this is young Mr. Longbottom. I'm sure that you remember his parents, Alice and Frank," her Lord spoke sickly.

She could not help but laugh. She had been locked away for the torture of his filthy, pathetic parents. Her eyes narrowed at him, making her look even crazier than she already appeared.

"How are dear old Mommy and Daddy?!" She shrieked, her disturbed mental state evident with every word.

Longbottom was clearly trying to say something, his mouth was moving but no sound escaped his lips. Bellatrix laughed at his pathetic attempts to speak through her master's silencing charm.

"You are even more pathetic than your dear old Mum and Dad," she hissed. She could not wait to see what her master had in store for this one.

"He is of no use to me anymore, Bella. While I must be the one to kill him, I thought that you would enjoy torturing him. After all, you did such a wonderful job with his parents," her master hissed as her eyes darted up to him momentarily before allowing a red light to escape her wand.

The boys beaten body writhed around on the floor, but there were no screams, no excessive flailing; torturing was not as fun without the screams. Her eyes looked up at her master, her eyes pleading as the boy lay silently on the floor. Her eyes met his wicked smile as he pointed his own want at the child, removing the silencing spell. Her smile widened and without even looking cast the cruciatus curse once more. His pathetic screams filled the cellar, echoing off the damp stone walls. She laughed madly as he screamed and writhed in pain. Her master allowed the torture to continue until the boy was on the edge of consciousness, he wanted him to be able to look into his eyes before he killed him.

"That is enough Bellatrix," he said coolly moving over to Neville, looking down into his glassy eyes.

Bellatrix backed up, watching eagerly for the Dark Lord to use the killing curse. When she started to believe that she could wait no longer a bright green light exploded from the tip of her master's wand.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!" her master's words echoed sickly through the stone room.

She shrieked with excited laughter, she loved watching her master kill.

"Your bloodlust is inspiring Bella," Voldemort hissed his eyes moving to the entrance of the cellar. "Nagini," he called before speaking parseltongue to his pet snake. Clearly, she was to be the one to clean up their mess.

Bellatrix watched with sick fascination as the giant serpent slithered its way over to the boy's limp body, slowly beginning to devour his lifeless corpse.

"Now, I believe your sister will be expecting you for breakfast. It is safe to assume that the rest of house is now awake." Her master's words dismissed her from his presence.

"Yes, my Lord," Bellatrix bowed before turning and flying out of the cellar into the drawing room and then off to find her sister.

The sun was now up, she had spent more time with her master than she had realized. She skipped happily around the manor, thrilled already by her exciting morning. She had only been free of Azkaban for a day and half and already she felt more like herself than she ever thought was possible.

"Good Morning," she exclaimed as she burst into the dining room where the rest of the Malfoy family was seated.

It was very obvious to everyone there that their dear Bellatrix was returning back to her arrogant self. Clearly it was a welcome change, her sister's eyes lighting up and the sound of her voice. There would be no need for any of them to worry about her and she could resume her role as one of the heads of her family. She took her seat proudly, conversing civilly with the table over breakfast. All was at it should be.


	5. Chapter 5

The day passed quietly enough, spending the majority of it with her sister. While it was nice feeling normal, she was honestly growing quite bored. The last day hand been a whirlwind, for the most part, and today just seemed mundane. Bellatrix loved spending time with her sister, but she longed for something to do. She had gotten her first taste of blood in thirteen years, and she wanted more. There was not much she could do until given more orders from her master. She needed to sit tight and wait, but after waiting for 13 years, her patience had worn thin. Not that she was ever much for sitting around twiddling her thumbs.

What did she do before giving her life to the Dark Lord? Her life as a child, at Hogwarts, and as a young woman where a blur. Had it really been that long ago? She was reminded of just how long it had been as she passed a mirror in her sister's room. She stopped when her reflection caught her eye, she did not even recognize herself. She stared for a moment, taking in her almost sickly looking reflection. Her hair was not as sleek as it had once been though it still hung in spiral curls around her pale face. There were several strands of silvery grey springing from her roots that would have to be taken care of. Her eyes and cheeks were sunken and dark, making her look almost ill. What stuck out the most was the fine wrinkles that were beginning to show around her eyes and mouth. How old was she now? It took her a moment to think about it. She was 31 when she was locked away, which would make her 44 now. 44?! It took her a moment to let it all sink in.

Her eyes then met her sister, who honestly looked older than her. Narcissa was 4 years younger than her and had endured very little hardship, yet it was amazing how much she had aged. Motherhood, Bellatrix thought, grateful she had never reproduced. Such things were not in her nature.

"Cissy! When did we get so old?!" Bella exclaimed looking at her sister as her wand flicked near the top of her head, erasing the grey that had been showing.

They both laughed for a moment before their sisterly bonded was interrupted by the burning where her dark mark was. Her eyes lit up, her smile widening, her master was calling her. She looked at her sister who knew, by the way, she was looking at her arm must be going on and nodded. It took only a moment and Bellatrix was gone, apparating to wherever her master was calling for her.

Bellatrix found herself in the library, her nephew Draco and Snape standing next to her. Draco looked even paler than she had remembered him being, but maybe he was always like that. Her eyes moved off of the pair looking for her master who was sitting by the fire, Nagini curled up at his feet. Before she had time to speak her master's voice broke the silence.

"Bella, my best lieutenant. I am sure you are wondering why I have called you here. As you are my best death eater I am entrusting you with a very important task," his words were cool, pausing only briefly, "You will be in charge of training young Draco for the task I have given to him and Severus."

Her pride and happiness were evident on her face, it was hard for her to hide her emotions and she really did not care to in the company of the Dark Lord.

"It would be my pleasure, Lord," she bowed before returning her eyes to her master.

"I will leave you to it then," her master said before disapparating, taking Nagini with him and leaving the three of them standing there in silence.

It lasted only a moment before Bella looked at the pair of them, "Severus you can leave us," she said shortly. Her eyes did not move off of Snape's, authority written all over her face. When it had taken much too long for him to go she shouted, "NOW!" Her words were cold and he quickly disapparated, obviously looking to avoid confrontation.

Snape, as far as Bellatrix was concerned, was a traitor and if she had it her way she would have cursed him into a stupor. Her Lord clearly knew what he was doing and she would never question his word. Draco meanwhile, looked as though he had just faced a bunch of dementors. What on earth had the Dark Lord asked of him? And why did he look so damn pitiful?

"Now, my dearest Draco, whatever the Dark Lord has asked of you, you should be proud. He rarely asks tasks of wizards so young and inexperienced."

This was probably about as supportive as she could be, especially with someone not thrilled to do the Dark Lords bidding. Draco still looked slightly mortified and Bellatrix really was not sure how to deal with him.

"Clearly, you need time to let this sink in. We will start tomorrow."

Hopefully, her sister could sort him out and they could start fresh tomorrow. Draco turned and walked out of the room, without saying a word, leaving Bellatrix there to ponder what Voldemort could have possibly asked of him.

She flopped down into one of the high-backed green chairs, the same one she found herself in just the night before. Her mind raced wondering what she would be training her nephew for. She sat in silence for a moment before realizing that it must be just about dinner time. There was no way that food was worth the awkward family dinner conversation that no doubt would accompany tonight's meal. She would simply just have to wonder into the kitchen later tonight and have the house elves whip something up for her. Not like they had any choice.

Her hand rested on her face as her eyes poured over the titles of the books lining the walls. She might as well do something productive while she wasted time hiding out from her family. The Malfoys' had always had a rather impressive dark arts book collection, unfortunately, they had not added much since Bellatrix had been locked away. She sighed heavily, completely bored now by her search, her head tilting slightly to the side. It would be so much more entertaining to just set the whole place on fire, but her sister would be ever so cross with her and she would lose her wonderful hiding place. As her eyes continued looking over book titles she heard the door creak open slowly. She spun around quickly, her wide eyes staring at the figure who was creeping into the room.

Rodolphus, of course, it would be that silly man to come and find her. Her eyes rolled, her lips pursed, the annoyance that her husband had caused written loudly on her face. He was not even worth being spoken to at this point in time and he had better have had one hell of a reason for being here.

"I just came to bring you some dinner, my dear," he spoke quietly, his eyes looking between the plate in his hand and the floor.

She sighed, slightly less annoyed than she had been but still rather perturbed by his presence. No matter how she felt about him, she supposed he was a rather good husband, he would do anything for her and that was extremely useful.

"Come on then," she sighed waiting for him to approach; at least this saved her a trip to the kitchen tonight.

Rodolphus placed the plate down on the end table beside her, glancing up at her nervously. Bellatrix knew that look all too well, and though she did not make it a habit of indulging his affections, she supposed she could just this once. At least, he could provide some sort of entertainment while she ate dinner after so long in Azkaban she did enjoy the company of other slightly more.

"You can sit down you know," her ever present attitude hanging on every word.

Rodolphus smiled, trying not to look too pleased with himself and sat while Bellatrix began to eat. He waited a moment, probably trying to gauge her temper before he opened his mouth.

"We missed you at dinner tonight," he begun softly, "Your sister was going to come look for you but I told her that I would so she could deal with Draco."

Bella had figured that he was going to be a mess for the rest of the evening, she still could not imagine what he had been asked to place him into such a state. She continued to eat, she could not be too indulgent with her husband after all.

Rodolphus was allowed to continue quiet, mundane conversation while Bellatrix finished her plate. By the time she finished dinner she was growing quite weary of his presence. Well reminded of why she kept him on such a tight leash she did not want to end up killing him when he was such a good death eater. As long as he was useful to her master and herself he was not worth killing, though maybe a cruciatus curse would do him some good. He was not worth it tonight, his pathetic screams would wake the entire house and there was no way she was dealing with any of that right now. He had always been a rather fine duelist when she did decide to curse him next she would have to make it interesting. She stood up swiftly, waving her wand over her plate as is disappeared.

"We should begin training soon, I need to make sure you are not going to embarrass me next time the Dark Lord sends us to do his bidding," she said dismissively before apparating back to her room, leaving Rodolphus alone in the study with a grin on his face.


	6. Chapter 6

Rodolphus remained in the study long after Bellatrix left, this was the happiest he had been in 13 years. They had always had a very strange relationship, he knew that everyone thought he was crazy for staying married to someone who very clearly did not share the same feelings, but he did not care. None of that matter to him. Ever since they were at Hogwarts together Rodolphus had been head over heels for her, even though she never paid him much mind, there was just something about her.

The two of them hung out with the same group of kids back then, most of whom became death eaters with them, but that was about as close to Bella as he got. He had asked her out once in their 7th year but she turned him down. That far from discouraged his feelings for her, he decided to just bide his time. She was the most beautiful witch he had ever laid eyes on, she had classic good looks without even trying.

Back then her hair while still long and curly, was a smooth rich brown. Her eyes were the deepest brown he had ever seen and while still large, did not hold the madness and bloodlust that they do now.

Bellatrix was never really sane, her madness was degenerative and was not very noticeable until after they left school. Anyone who was not close to her would have had no idea of the insanity that lay just below the surface, but those who knew her knew the madness within. Rodolphus loved her madness and her passion, he had never met anyone like her and knew he never would.

She was one of the top students in her year, without even trying, and things she cared about she did with all of her heart. Mind you, most of the things she cared about were: causing trouble, practicing dark magic in abandoned classrooms, and jinxing first-year students. It is not hard to see how she ended up where she did.

After they left Hogwarts Bella's family approached his about marriage, Rodolphus was thrilled with the idea but it was clear that Bellatrix could absolutely care less. Always rather positive he knew it could be worse, at least, she did not hate him. After a while, they came to an understanding and wed shortly after. They were married for less than a year before they were recruited as death eaters. That is when he lost all hope of her ever returning his feelings.

If he had not been so passionate about what they were doing he might have protested but he knew that this was what she wanted and he only wanted to make her happy. Voldemort had seen a lot of the same things that Rodolphus had from the very beginning. Her passion and skill set her apart from the other death eaters and she was taken under the Dark Lords wing. As soon as they were recruited it was clear that Bellatrix favored Voldemort over Rodolphus and it did not take long for her to fall completely head over heels for him.

They worked extremely well together and as Bellatrix rose in the ranks so did Rodolphus. Despite how she felt about him she kept him by her side, and after all the years he would almost say that they were dear friends – almost. If they did not have the same name you would never know that they were married as Bellatrix never spoke of him. Their relationship was a working relationship and that was it.

When they first got married he hoped that one day she would come to love him, when it was clear that was never an option he was happy with what he could get. Rodolphus was to Bellatrix as Bellatrix was to Voldemort though he sometimes had a feeling that Voldemort cared more about Bellatrix than she cared about him. It was okay, though, he was happy to be there with her. He was like her shadow in battle, never far away and always there to protect her if she ever needed such a thing.

After training with the Dark Lord her already great dueling skills were outstanding and so he would not embarrass her she started training with him. He absolutely loved it, it was the best part of their relationship. He cherished all the time she allowed him to be with her and loved seeing how passionate she was. It was how he fell in love with her and continued to love her after everything they had been through. While he would always hope that things might change, although fairly certain they would not, he would rather have her like this than not at all.

It was not long before he found himself back in his room. He fell asleep dreaming about the next time he would get to train with her. He slept the best he had in 13 years, happy to have his wife in the small ways she allowed.


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning went as mornings were supposed to go, at least, it felt like this is how normal witches went about their mornings. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew that this was how her life used to be. As she was quietly eating breakfast with her family she had a sudden thought that this was not how she wanted her life to be. After 13 years locked away, while yes it was a nice change, it was all too normal for her tastes. She was terribly bored, longing for excitement and the company of the only person she was longing to spend time with. As she began to get full, her mind far away from what she was doing, she started playing with the food on her plate. Her fork pushed various scraps around the large plate as her mind wandered aimlessly, far away from the mundane breakfast chatter. By the time Bella was aware of what was going on the Malfoys were all staring at her. Clearly someone must have said something to her that she completely ignored.

"What?!" She shouted sharply, slightly irritated by the looks her family were giving her.

"Draco said that you would be training him for the task the Dark Lord has given him?" Narcissa said softly. Bellatrix nodded.

"Whenever he is ready," she said sarcastically in a childish voice, her eyes moving to Draco.

He still looked slightly petrified and she was not sure if it was because of whatever he was going to have to do, or if it had something to do with her. After all, she had not seen her nephew since he was a baby and he could not possibly remember her. She must have one hell of a reputation to freak him out so badly. The thought made her smile, a wicked smile that usually meant she was up to no good. He would soon find out why she was the Dark Lord's right hand.

Narcissa sat up a little straighter, "He is ready sister."

Bella's smiled widened, "Very good. When shall we begin?"

Lucius finally piped up at this point, "Immediately," he said rising from his seat and gesturing for his wife to come with him.

That was all Bellatrix needed to hear. She rose with a sick smile, striding over to Draco and wrapping her hand over his arm. In a blink, they were gone.

Bellatrix apparated herself and Draco into the library. The moment her feet touched the floor she unwrapped her hand from her nephew's arm and turned quickly facing him her wand pointed at his chest. His eyes were wide and he was even paler than he normally was completely frozen to the spot.

Bellatrix sighed loudly, flopping her arms down by her side and shouted, "And now you are dead!"

It took every ounce of will she had to not curse him for being such a coward. She had to remind herself that he was only just a boy and a sheltered one at that. Bella placed her wand back into her robes and approached Draco, placing her arms around him.

"Now my dear, darling nephew, you are a death eater now. The Dark Lord has given you your first task and I know your mum would like you to live through it." She sighed taking a breath before continuing, "Now, your first lesson is to always be prepared!"

Starting from square one, that was a new one for her. Normally she was at least around people who were not afraid to use their wands. It was going to be a long day and an even longer break until Draco returned to Hogwarts. If the Dark Lord had not asked her to take him under her wing she would not be putting herself through this.

"So it looks like we need to start with some defense if you are to stay alive," she said stepping away her wand back out and pointed at him as she turned around. "Now, the shield charm is not easy and you will need to practice as much as you can if you want to stand a fighting chance." She demonstrated this charm once for him, "Now let's see it!" As she finished her sentence she cast a jinx at her nephew.

She loved that she did not need to speak when she was casting such simple spells. As she thought Oppugno and the books started flying off the shelves at Draco. The first one hit him square in the face as he tried to cast a shield. He was pelted by several more books before he managed a weak shield that stopped the next book from pelting into him. They continued like that for a while, Draco was able to stop a few books but just barely. Certainly none of them came flying back at her. Finally, she grew bored of watching her nephew being pelted by old books and after he managed to stop the latest book, a particularly thick one at that, she stopped the onslaught of books. Waving her wand once more, she returned the books littering the floor back to their shelves.

"Not bad," she said glad that he was not completely useless. She did not want to beat him up too bad and did not need a lecture from her sister on being too hard on him. "Well, that's it for right now. Be prepared for your next lesson," she said before disapparating, leaving Draco alone.

She popped into the kitchen, grabbing a handful of Strawberries, before apparating back to her room.

Her feet hit the floor as she took a bite out of one of the berries. As her room came into view she suddenly stopped; Voldemort was standing in her room. She stood there for a moment, absolutely speechless before he spoke.

"Ah, I wondered when you would be back," he said calmly.

How long had he been waiting in here for her? Why was he looking for her in her bedroom? She finally closed her gaping mouth swallowing the strawberry that was left sitting on her tongue.

"My Lord," she finally managed, bowing her head to her master.

"I just came to see how you were adjusting, you seem to be acting more like yourself." His words completely baffled her. In all the years she had been a death eater, even as close as she was to her master, she could not wrap her head around such a mundane conversation. Before she had a chance to speak Voldemort approached, standing just inches from her.

She nodded quickly, "Very well, my Lord," she spoke quickly before looking up into his cold blue eyes.

A wicked smile played on his lips, "That's good. I still owe you a reward, my most loyal Bella."

She had completely forgotten about it, to be perfectly honest.

"Being back here with you is reward enough, my Lord," she spoke honestly.

Being back by her master's side was all that kept her from completely losing it while in Azkaban.

"I knew you would say that," he said with a smile, "Like I've already told you, you deserve a reward. I could not ask for a better Lieutenant; your loyalty is inspiring but I'm not sure what more I could give you." His words hung in the air.

It was true that he had already given her so much. He had taken her under his wing from the start and trained her. She only had one secret desire, but she knew that it could never happen. Her master did not suffer such mortal afflictions. Not that it would ever change how she felt, even for a moment. If anything, it just made her appreciate what little indulgences she was given, like this.

He leaned in close and whispered in her ear, "Don't worry, I will think of something for you." He pulled away, pausing momentarily centimeters away from her face before stepping back.

She breathed out as he moved back, a tiny shutter moving through her. Her eyes were wide, excited, as she searched his face trying to figure him out. She knew she never would but it would never stop her from searching. Always wanting things she could not have.

"Well I will leave you with your snack and I will see you later," he said playfully before disapparating.

She was so shocked by everything that had happened she had completely forgotten that she was holding a handful of strawberries. She was not one to question her master but what on Earth was that all about. Was he trying to tease her? Because he certainly had. She took a moment to try and process everything before flopping down on her bed, tossing a strawberry into her mouth. She certainly was not as hungry as she was before she got up here.


	8. Chapter 8

Bellatrix was increasingly busy as the summer dwindled away. Her schedule was packed, much to her delight. In the mornings, she trained with her nephew, Draco. He thankfully was getting the hang of everything his aunt was teaching him and they grew closer as their lessons continued. She had a soft spot for her nephew, he was a good kid, and he had the possibility to make them all very proud. Then in the evenings, she trained with Rodolphus, Rabastan, and a few other various death eaters. She loved training so regularly, it made her feel alive. She also loved having an excuse to curse people. It was all great fun but there was one thing missing from the rush of the past weeks; Voldemort.

She had not seen him since he showed up in her room but she knew that he must be busy. Their numbers were growing by the day, all over the country and he had to be working on plans for the Ministry. The last thing she heard, they had someone lined up to take over as Minister once they disposed of the current one. She hoped that the Dark Lord would trust her with such a task unless he wanted to do it himself. He seemed to be laying low, giving out more assignments to his followers. She should not be wondering what he was up to, just ready to do whatever he asked. She could not help but to wonder about him during her downtime. She could wonder about him all she wanted but it certainly was not going to change anything.

Just when she was wondering when she would see her master again she felt the familiar burn across her arm. A sick smile played across her lips and she quickly apparated to wherever her Lord was calling her to. She soon found herself in the formal dining room surrounded by her fellow death eaters. Finally a meeting, she did not like being in the dark about their plans. She quickly took her seat, at the right of the Dark Lord. She was so happy to see him again and she loved being by his side. It did not take long for everyone to arrive and take their seats around the table. The room was silent for a moment before her master finally spoke.

"My dear friends," he began slowly. "I am so pleased that you could all join me here tonight to discuss our upcoming plans. It has been two months since we last met and I need to make sure that everyone is on the same page moving forward. These next few months are going to be crucial. Our plans to take over Hogwarts will be set in motion at the start of term, but we still need to discuss who we will use as the new Minister of Magic." He looked around the room for a moment, waiting for someone to pipe up with a suggestion. "Well while you all think over that, I know who I cannot use. Our current head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement is Madam Amelia Bones and if the Minister resigns before we have more of a foothold in the ministry she will be the one to replace him. It would be most inconvenient if this were to happen." He paused once again before turning and looking directly at Bellatrix for the first time since she had arrived, "Bellatrix, you will take care of her for me."

She could not help but to grin, a little too excited for her own good, "It will be my pleasure, Lord."

He smiled at her, "I thought it would be. Your bloodlust is ever so inspiring." He then returned his attention back to the rest of the room, "We need to make sure whoever replaces Madam Bones after her death is someone we can use as Minister. Yaxley, who is in line to replace her?"

The whole room was now looking over to where Yaxley was seated. He was a rather unpleasant looking man, but she supposed that none of them were exactly pleasant looking anymore.

"I believe it will be Pius Thicknesse, my Lord."

Voldemort kept his eyes locked on Yaxley, "Will he be suitable as a new Minister?"

Yaxley nodded before speaking, "Yes, my Lord. He is quite a speaker, a true politician, my Lord."

The Dark Lord smiled wickedly, "Very good, you will need to place him under the imperius curse as soon as possible."

Yaxley bowed his head, "Yes, my Lord."

The Dark Lord's eyes moved back to the rest of the room "Very good, that is all for tonight. We will meet again soon." His words dismissed the group.

A few followers disapparated but most stayed to talk while they were all in the same place. Voldemort stayed for a moment to briefly speak to Snape before he too disapparated. Bellatrix stood and moved over to speak to Rodolphus and his brother.

"I will have you two begin surveillance on our little Miss Bones immediately. I would like to carry out the Dark Lord's wishes as soon as possible," she hissed as the two nodded before they too disapparated.

Rodolphus and his brother had always been very good at uncovering information on their targets. She then went over to where her sister was speaking to Severus. She personally did not care for the traitor, but clearly the Dark Lord did. She knew her sister was worried about Draco fulfilling his assignment and Severus was supposed to be helping him with it. She would have to make sure that he watched over her dear nephew.

"Severus," she hissed as she stood next to her sister, "You will be watching over our precious Draco while he works to fulfill the task the Dark Lord has given the two of you?" The Dark Lord trusted him, but she certainly did not. Especially when it came to her nephew.

Snape nodded, "Of course, Bella."

She moved closer to him, circling him like an animal circles its prey. "Swear to it," she hissed as she moved back to her sister's side, "Make the unbreakable vow."

Bellatrix smiled wickedly, her sister's eyes were wide clear shocked at what her sister was asking for. She cared a great deal for her sister and knew if anything happened to her son it would kill her. That and she had grown quite fond of her little nephew.

Snape's eyes moved to Bella, "Take out your wand," he spoke deliberately holding his arm out to Narcissa.

Bellatrix smiled wicked as her sister extended her arm to Snape. As Narcissa and Snape made their vow the red hot light wrapped around their hands. When it was done her wicked smiled remained, without saying another word she turned and skipped off to her room. Tomorrow was going to be a very busy day indeed.


	9. Chapter 9

The next few days passed slowly, too slowly. She still spent her mornings training Draco, trying to get in as much as she could before he left for school on the first. Time had never moved so quickly yet so slowly at the same time. It was hard to believe it was already the end of August, where had the last two months gone? It was a sunny afternoon when Bellatrix finished Draco's training for the day, this was the last time they would train before Draco left for school tomorrow.

She smiled as nicely as she could, "You are going to do fine," she said to him, trying to be supportive. She knew that he was nervous and she knew no matter what her sister said to him that he was still going to be just as nervous.

He flashed a weak smile, "Thanks, Bella."

He was an okay kid, her sister did a good job with him. She gave him a quick hug, "Now I'm sure your mum is going to want to spend the rest of the day with you. You best get going."

He smiled and walked out of the room, leaving Bella alone in the library. She pursed her lips and sighed, she was getting sick of waiting for Rodolphus and Rabastan. She was going to complete her task tonight and she could not help but be nervous. She had expected them back last night and did not like having to plan so last minute. It was different if she did not have to keep a low profile, but with her wanted poster plastered all over the wizarding world she knew she needed to keep her head down. This was her first real assignment since being freed, and she was itching to complete it. It had been so long since she had been given the chance to kill someone if anything she was a little too excited. Though, perhaps, she was more excited to please the Dark Lord. All she wanted was for this to go as smoothly as possible. She would just have to try and stay occupied until those useless boys got back with her information. She supposed if she wanted it done promptly she would have had to have done it herself. It just was simply not an option while she was training Draco. That and she might have killed her too early, Bellatrix was not one to dilly dally. She had to wait until Yaxley had placed Pius under the imperius curse, which thankfully was complete.

Bellatrix paced through the manor anxiously waiting. She could not even manage to eat lunch she was so anxious. She eventually found herself in the garden, sitting on the soft earth between rows of tall flowers. Her wand in hand she cursed the first creature that crossed her path. The large beetle danced around the garden, her wand following it around. Then she looked on unimpressed as it writhed in pain on the ground in front of her. After a while, she finally put the creature out of its misery before flinging its corpse into the nearest flower bed. She was just getting ready to start lighting various plants on fire when she heard footsteps coming along the path. She kept low, her wand out and ready, you could never be too careful. She finally laid her eyes upon the two brothers who were doing a poor job of searching for her.

She stood up quickly, wand still out, "Where have you two idiots been?!" She shouted stomping over to the pair of them. "You are lucky I am in a hurry or the pair of you would be in quite a mess."

The two brothers looked slightly terrified and it took a moment before either one managed to speak. "Bella we were just being thorough, I would have hated to have delivered incorrect information. It is also slightly harder to snoop then it was before, not that it is any excuse." Rodolphus sure knew how to cover his ass.

She sighed, placing her wand back inside her robes, "Very well, what have you learned."

Rodolphus took a deep breath before beginning, "Well she is really rather boring to be honest. She lives alone and really only leaves the house to go to work. She does have family, but her demanding work schedule keeps them away. Her niece is leaving for Hogwarts tomorrow so we had to stick around to make sure that they were not going to drop in."

Bellatrix nodded, this seemed like it might be a little too easy. Not that this Bones lady was not going to be a challenge, the head of the department of magical law enforcement had to be a skilled witch.

She nodded, "Very good, anything else?"

The two men shook their heads, "Not really. She keeps a regular ministry schedule. Same thing every day," Rodolphus added making sure he had told his wife everything she would need to know before beginning her task.

"Very well," she began shortly, "As usual the two of you will accompany me in case anything should go wrong. We will meet outside her house at precisely two o'clock in the morning."

Without another word she turned and left the two of them in the garden and headed upstairs. She was extremely confident now in her plans for this evening which meant it was now time for a snack and a nap. She needed to be well fed and well rested before setting off tonight.

Her first stop was to the kitchens where she had the house elves whip up a nice size dinner for her which she took to the dining room to eat quickly. It was nice to eat alone for once, not having to worry about what was being said around you. After finishing she apperated up to her room where she shut the curtains and blew out the candles before slipping into her pajamas and curling up in bed. It took her awhile but she eventually drifted off to sleep and slept soundly until sometime around one in the morning. She sat up with a wicked smile, waving her wand to lighting the candles. She took her time getting up and getting dressed, she wanted to make sure she looked her finest for her date with Madame Bones.

At two am exactly she apparated out to the street in front of Madame Bones's house. She was wearing her usual black robes with the hood pulled up over her head, hiding her face in shadows. She was only there a moment before Rodolphus and Rabastan appeared next to her, one on either side. She first placed a spell over the house so sweet Amelia Bones could not disapparate before she had time to kill her. Without a word, she flew forward smashing through the front door and through the house. She liked to destroy as much as she could before killing her victim, she also wanted her to have a chance to wake up. She liked seeing the fear in their eyes before she cursed them.

It was only moments before the three of them smashed through the bedroom door where a half asleep woman was sitting upright in her bed, her covers pulled up around her, wand in hand. Bellatrix smiled sickly her wand pointed directly at the woman's chest. Amelia managed to fire off a spell which Bellatrix easily deflected sending it smashing into the bedroom window. She laughed madly as red light shot out of her wand hitting the woman square in the chest. Amelia screamed as she writhed in pain on the bed. The more the woman screamed the more Bellatrix laughed. This was the most fun she had had since she tortured the Longbottoms. She sent curse after curse at the woman until her screams began to die down.

When she finally grew bored of torturing her she shouted "AVADA KEDAVRA!"

Green light rushed from her wand and the woman fell limp on the bed. She laughed wickedly as she held her wand up, pointing it out the broken window. Without a word emerald, green light shot from her wand casting the dark mark into the air. The three of them flew out of the bedroom window landing in the street below, from there Bellatrix then sat the house on fire before apparating back to the manor. She had not had this much fun since she could not remember when. Her master was surely going to be pleased with her work tonight.


	10. Chapter 10

Bellatrix had never slept so well in her entire life and by the time she woke up the sun was already high in the sky. She smiled sleepily as she laid in her bed, contently thinking about last night. She was not one for reading the paper but she was very curious what the Daily Prophet was going to say about the killing. Would it make the front page? Would there be pictures? She sure hoped so. She sighed contently to herself as she stretched her arms out before slipping out of bed. Part of her would have been happy to stay snuggled in the covers all day, but now she wanted to go see how the rest of the wizarding world was reacting to the death of poor Madame Bones.

In a matter of minutes, she was up and dressed, running her fingers through her thick hair as she looked in the mirror that hung over the dresser in her room. She was finally starting to look like herself again, these past months had been good to her. She was putting a little weight on and her bones were becoming less visible. She would always bear the scars from her imprisonment but, at least, she did not look like a ghost anymore. Maybe she just felt like herself today, she never paid this much attention to the mirror, either way, she liked it. When she had finally decided her hair looked acceptable she turned and left, headed down to the dining room. She was hoping she would be able to catch her sister and Lucius for lunch and get her hands on a copy of the paper.

There was an obvious skip in her step and she made her way through the manor and downstairs to the small dining room where the Malfoys usually ate. She swung open the doors to find her sister and her husband finishing up their lunches. Happy she had caught them she smiled.

"Good Afternoon!" She spoke as she made her way over to the chair next to Narcissa, sitting down a permanent grin plastered on her lips.

"Aren't you the happy one today," Lucius hissed, clearly aware of how full of herself she was.

Bella just smirked back at him as she turned her attention to her food. She had not realized how hungry she was until there was a plate of food sitting in front of her.

As she started eating her sister turned to her and said, "Someone was out late last night," as she sat that morning's Daily Prophet next to her.

Narcissa never understood her sister's bloodlust but never the less, she knew that however twisted, it made her sister happy. Bellatrix's eyes grew wide as she hastily swallowed her food and reached for the paper. There it was. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw the trashed home and dark mark gracing the front page of that morning's paper. She could hardly contain her excitement as she read through the article.

Madame Amelia Bones

Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement

Viciously Murdered by Death Eaters

The title alone made her giddy, the rest of the article did not say much else. It is not like she left any evidence or clues behind as to why she was murdered. Of course, she clearly posed some kind of threat but the Daily Prophet decided that she must have refused to join them. She wishes the Dark Lord would have asked such a privilege of her. As Bellatrix read the paper she completely forgot about her lunch and her family. As always the Daily Prophet was completely clueless, but she loved reading the description of how they found her and how she clearly put up a fight. That made her laugh the most, it was sick how easy it was to torture and kill her.

As she continued reading her sister finally spoke up, "So, I take it everything went alright last night."

Bella looked up quickly, a wild crazy look painted all over her face.

"Last night went perfectly! Really could not have asked for much more," she exclaimed excitedly.

Narcissa smiled back at her sweetly, "Well I'm glad you are okay."

Her sister would never admit that she was worried about her. They used to fight about it all of the time, but Narcissa knew to just leave it. Bellatrix finished scanning the paper, making sure she caught every mention of the killing last night. Finally satisfied by the report she turned back to her lunch, finishing it quickly.

There was nothing that could ruin her mood today. Though she knew at some point she would come down from her high and all she could do was to wait for the Dark Lord to give her another assignment. She hoped that it would be soon, after last night she was itching for more. Her thoughts carried her outside into the garden, where she wandered around slightly aimless. Just her and her thoughts; at least that is what she thought. She was not paying attention when a cold voice broke her train of thought.

"You did well last night Bellatrix."

Her heart stopped for a moment as she spun around looking for where the voice had come from. Standing in between rows of plants was the Dark Lord himself. Bellatrix smiled wickedly.

"Thank you, my Lord," she said proudly. She was pretty impressed with her work last night, especially after seeing today's paper.

"I am glad to see that you didn't lose your touch. I will have a lot more for you in the coming months, but we cannot move too fast or we risk endangering our plans," he spoke always thinking of the larger plan, something Bellatrix had a hard time with. "There will be a lot of people in and out of here as our plans begin to be put into motion and I would like them to train with you. I am hoping your passionate bloodlust might inspire them," he added with a sick grin.

She loved the way he complimented her. "Yes my Lord," she said bowing her head.

Then, just like that, he was gone and Bellatrix was once again in the garden alone. She knew that she better enjoy the alone time that she had right now because that was all about to change. She loved working for her master and was more than excited to begin training more. She needed something to keep her going while she waited for more assignments. She decided to fully enjoy the rest of her day, basking in the glory from her win last night. This also meant she was going to the kitchen for dessert, the Malfoys' house elves made some awesome chocolate cake. This was her day and nothing was going to change that, especially now.


	11. Chapter 11

She could not believe how quickly time was passing. It was already almost the end of October and nothing could be better, well nothing could realistically be better. She had been out of Azkaban for four whole months. Bellatrix spent her days training with different groups of death eaters. Her mornings were spent with the newer members, the ones that the Dark Lord did not fully trust yet. They were the ones being sent out to kill muggles, almost like an initiation. Bella always volunteered to go but her master said he needed her safe, not that she could not handle it but he did not want her getting caught. He was sending the disposable followers, the ones that had yet to prove themselves like she had. Then in the afternoons, she trained with most of the members of the Dark Lord's inner circle. Then in the evenings, she trained with Rodolphus and Rabastan who she worked the best with. It was just like old times, except she was much more useful now. Her status as the Dark Lord's right hand was clear to everyone now as she was helping to manage a lot of what was going on. The power was infectious.

Today, however, Bellatrix had the day off. Her sister and brother-in-law were throwing a Halloween Ball in less than a week and Bella needed a dress. She could not remember the last time she was able to go shopping. Narcissa made special arrangements at a shop whose owner was a supporter of the Dark Lord so Bella could pick something out on her own. She was so absolutely excited, it had been so long since she had an excuse to dress up and party with her sister. While everyone was going to be wearing masks and costumes, it was only going to be followers of the Dark Lord so she would not have to keep her head down. It was difficult sometimes having to stay hidden away in the manor. Always worth it but not always easy.

She dressed warmly for the day and grabbed her long hooded dragonhide trench coat before heading down of breakfast. She was like a giddy school girl as she skipped downstairs into the dining room where her sister and brother-in-law were already eating. She smiled brightly.

"Good Morning," she said happily as she sat down at her usual spot next to Narcissa.

"Good Morning Bella," her sister said sweetly, "I see someone is excited about going out today!"

Bella simply nodded as she started eating. The quicker she ate the quicker they could go.

"Aren't you lucky going out during the day," Lucius said sarcastically having a little fun with his sister-in-law.

Bellatrix and Lucius were not particularly close but they loved to pick on each other. He was the brother she had never had. She turned to him and stuck her tongue out and made a sarcastic noise before returning to her food. It was not long before they had finished breakfast, Narcissa had said her goodbyes to her husband and Bella was hidden inside her coat. Then with a flash, the sisters were off.

When she opened her eyes they were standing in the middle of Knockturn Alley in front of an old shop that Bella recognized from her youth. Narcissa walked up and opened the door promptly, holding it open for her sister to skip inside. It was a small shop with some dusty old robes in the front window. A very old witch came out from the back and gestured for them to follow her. They followed her through the back of the shop which was clearly used for storage and down through a trapdoor into a large room underneath the shop. Inside were some of the most beautiful dresses and robes Bellatrix had seen in a very long time.

"Look around and let me know when you find something you like," the little old witch said before taking a seat by the large mirror. She smiled excitedly to her sister as she removed her hood from her head and made her over to one of the racks of long formal dresses. They both flipped through the racks of dresses looking for something they liked not saying a word until Bella stopped at one looking it up and down carefully.

"Cissy, what do you think of this one?" she said looking at her sister.

It had been so long since she had done anything like this she was a little nervous. It was floor length and the darkest emerald green she had ever seen. It had a full skirt, long sleeves, and a corseted bodice. It was very Victorian and knowing this place it was probably almost as old.

Her sister smiled, "It's perfect! Go try it on!" Narcissa was now almost as excited as she was.

Bellatrix turned to the owner of the shop, "I would like this one."

The old woman smiled at her as she shuffled over pulling it from the rack and taking her to go try it on. As the dressed was tied up the back she knew that it was perfect, she had not even seen herself in it and she knew. It fit perfectly like it had been made just for her. She smiled as she came back out into the main room, looking at her sister before turning to look in the mirror.

Narcissa sighed happily, "Oh Bella it is beautiful!"

Bella's smile only grew as she took in her image in the mirror. It was breathtaking. She kept her eyes on the mirror as the little old witch swished her wand, examining the fit on the dress. It needed very little done to it and soon she was back in her robes and was waiting for her sister. It was a lot harder for Narcissa as she already had so many beautiful dresses. Her sister finally picked out a long dark shimmery grey dress with a lace bodice with long sleeves. It hugged her slender body tightly and made her look even taller and more elegant than she already was.

"Oh Cissy you look stunning," Bella exclaimed when she came out in the dress.

She waited while her sister's dress was fitted and their gowns were wrapped up. Their next stop was to find masks over at McHavelock's. He always had a great assortment of masks this time of year. Picking out masks took a lot less time. Narcissa picked out a bright silver mask with a delicate crescent moon on it. Bellatrix meanwhile picked out a pearly black mask that was very reminiscent of a serpent. With their purchases complete they apparated back to the manor. She absolutely could not wait for the ball.

When they got back Bella went upstairs to her room where she hung her new dress up in the closet and placed her mask on her dresser. Then she saw the thin silver box sitting on the dresser with her name on it and a black bow. Who would have gotten her a present, it was nowhere near her birthday. She opened the box carefully, unsure of what she would find inside. She was completely shocked, inside was the most beautiful necklace she had ever seen. It was solid white gold with large emeralds and diamonds around the front. It also looked extremely old and she knew right away that it was not one of her family's' heirlooms. She pulled it out of the box and examined it closely before searching for a note or something that would indicate who had given it to her. There was nothing there, though. She placed the necklace back on her dresser as sat on the edge of her bed trying to figure out who had given her such a magnificent gift. She spent most of the evening trying to figure it out before heading down to dinner to ask her sister. Narcissa surely would know, she seemed to know just about everything that went on inside the manor.

Bellatrix flew down to dinner taking her normal spot next to her sister. As soon as she sat down she leaned over and whispered to her sister.

"Do you know who left the necklace for me in my room?"

Her sister looked at her stunned for a moment and shook her head, "Someone left you a necklace in your room?" Bella nodded as her sister asked, "Could it have been Rodolphus?"

Bellatrix rolled her eyes and shook her head, no matter how many times she had tried to explain their relationship to her sister she never fully understood. Besides how on Earth would he get his hands on something like that? It was very obviously and heirloom and not one she had ever seen which canceled out the Lestrange, Black, and Malfoy families. Narcissa finally shrugged a slightly worrisome look on her face. They eventually turned their attention to their dinners, but Bella's mind was still racing. She tried to keep up with the dinner table chit chat but was having a hard time as she got lost in her thoughts. She hardly ate she was thinking so much.

Finally, she gave up and tried to push it out of her mind. Maybe it was just Rodolphus, picked it up while he was out on an assignment. Other than wondering where her new necklace came from she really was super excited for this party. Then a sudden thought dawned on her, Rodolphus was going to end up being her escort. It had been so long since they had to put up the appearance of being married that she had almost forgotten all about it. Not like it was a real marriage anyway. She supposed he could escort her in and have the first dance and then he would have to go on his way. She was going to enjoy this party no matter what. Her thoughts of the ball and her mystery necklace filled her head until she fell asleep, even sneaking their way into her dreams. Only six more days.


	12. Chapter 12

The rest of the week passed as quickly as ever thanks to her rigorous training schedule. She had not brought up her mysterious necklace up with anyone, clearly whoever gave it to her did not want her to know. Her sister was the only person she had said anything to and she knew her sister would not bring it up to anyone. She was just going to wait and see if anyone brought it up at the ball. Really all of this made her feel young again, like when she was dating and secret admirers while she was in school. Though she was pretty sure it was just Rodolphus which took the fun out of the whole thing.

Today was the day and her schedule was once again cleared so she could spend the day getting ready for the ball with Narcissa. She took her time getting up and getting dressed, it was going to be a long night and she did not want to get tired half way through. By the time she came downstairs it was lunch time. She ate a light lunch with her sister before heading back upstairs to grab her dress, mask, and necklace before heading to her sister's room. Narcissa was much better at these things than she was, especially after being locked away for 13 years. She was so excited she could hardly contain herself as she bounded into her sister's room for their girls afternoon. Her sister quickly sat her down on the green seat that sat in front of the vanity.

"Now we are going to start with your hair first because it is going to take a while," she said attempting to run her fingers through it.

Bellatrix's hair was extremely long and curly and knotted and matted very easy. She had never been very good at doing anything with her hair and she did not do much to it normally. Her sister pulled out a large jar of what she could only assume was Sleekeazy's and began running it through her curls. After at least an hour her sister had managed to loosen up and defrizz her espresso curls. Her hair was even longer now but it was a lot softer and cleaner looking. Narcissa must have used half the jar of hair potion but it had certainly worked. Her sister was looking extremely pleased with herself as she began pinning back her long strands of hair. Bellatrix's hair was so long she could not wear it all the way up but her sister was, at least, able to get it out of her face. As she watched in the mirror she could not help but smile. She had not looked like this in so long, maybe ever since her school days. Once her sister was content with her hair she started on her makeup, taking years off immediately. The deep bags under her eyes were no longer black and while it was still obvious the toll her time away had on her it was not the only thing you saw. Narcissa tried to cover up her prison number on her neck but Bella stopped her, she was immensely proud of her time there. Her prison number was a badge of honor if anything it should be shown off.

Several hours later they were both made up and dressed. Bella's makeup and nails matched her deep emerald dress and she looked years younger. Her new necklace was, even more, stunning around her neck and she could not stop looking at herself in the mirror. Her sister was beautiful as always, her hair was sleekly pinned up and her makeup was simple and her nails matched her silver mask. If the moon could turn into a person, it would look like her sister. When Narcissa had decided that they were ready they walked arm in arms downstairs to the formal dining room. They had cleared out this space last night so they could decorate for today. They were using several spaces for tonight's ball but this dining room was going to serve as the main room were the band and dance floor would be. The closer they got the more excited she got and the more she could hear their guests arriving and filling up the dining room.

When they arrived at the double doors leading into the room they were met by Lucius and, much to Bellatrix's displeasure, Rodolphus. Not even Rodolphus could ruin her mood, though, she was going to have fun no matter what she had to endure. Rodolphus was wearing bright green dress robes with a bird-like a mask. He actually looked rather nice tonight and she was glad that at least he would not embarrass her.

"There you two are! Looking wonderful as always," Lucius said the last part directed more to his wife.

Narcissa and Lucius looked amazing as always together, with Lucius dressed in off white and gold dress robes with a golden demon mask. She reluctantly left her sister's side as they got ready to enter the ball. She stood next to her husband quietly wanting to get their entrance and first dance over with.

He leaned in and whispered softly, "You look really wonderful." She smiled back at him as sweetly as she could manage with him.

"Thank you," she said, actually meaning it. She did like compliments, even when they came from him.

She kept waiting for him to bring up the necklace that she thought he must have gotten her but he did not. Then before there was time to say another word the music started and the double doors swung open.

Lucius and Narcissa entered first followed by her and Rodolphus. She flashed a large smile as they entered and made their way into the center of the dance floor. She felt like a star as everyone watched them enter and have the first dance. By the time their dance was over the floor was filled with masked couples dancing around. Bella had forgotten that her husband was actually a very good dancer and there would not be anything else to really do for the first couple of very formal songs. So she allowed him to stay and dance with her for a few more though she did not like how pleased he was looking with himself. By the end of the fourth song the crowd had started to disperse and people were beginning to move around a bit. She took this as her queue to ditch her husband and wonder around for a little.

She leaned in and whispered to him, "I'm going to go wander a bit," she said as she moved back. He nodded and she was out of there.

Her first stop was to the bar for a stiff drink. A quick shot of fire whiskey before settling for a glass of champagne. She knew her sister would be extremely upset if she stayed at the bar all night and it would be much easier to drink glass after glass of champagne without looking like a drunk. She took her glass and started making her way around the party, just kind of observing everyone. She had to admit she felt a little out of her element, it had been far too long since the last party she had been to. Bellatrix did not make it too far before she was stopped by a man in black hooded dress robes and a very old looking black mask that covered his face. He held out a pale hand to her

"Care to dance?" As he spoke her eyes grew wide, shocked to hear her master's voice coming from behind the mask.

"It would be an honor, my Lord," she said proudly taking his hand and handing her drink off to one of the wandering attendants.

She was in absolute shock as they made their way onto the dance floor and began dancing around the room. She could not even believe that he had come let alone was dancing with her. As the song ended they bowed to each other and she was, even more, shocked as he took her hand again for the next dance.

As they danced he whispered, "I'm glad that you like the necklace."

She was completely taken aback by this, her master was full of surprises.

"I love it, my Lord," she whispered back the smile on her face widening.

Dancing with her master was one of the greatest things that had ever happened to her and wearing a necklace that he had given her was just beyond anything she could have ever imagined. This might just be the best night of her life she thought as they continued to dance song after song. She eventually lost track of how long they had been out on the floor after each song always preparing herself for his departure. Finally at the end of the last song he looked at her.

"Care to come with me to go get a drink?" he asked smoothly.

She nodded happily and before she had time to speak he held his hand out for her. She placed her hand lightly in his as he lead her across the room and over to the bar. He handed her a glass of champagne before leading her out of the room and out into the garden.

She could not even begin to have a clue as to what the Dark Lord was up to. Her mind and her heart were racing as they strolled around the gardens that were bathed in the silver moonlight. They walked in silent for what seemed like forever before her master finally spoke.

"I hope you are having a good night. You certainly deserve it for everything that you have been doing," his words smooth in the crisp night air.

"Thank you, my Lord, I certainly am," she replied trying not to sound too ecstatic.

"Very good. I wanted you to know how pleased I am with you for training everyone so, vigorously. The quality of our followers is quickly improving. I must admit that your bloodlust is contagious and that you frighten some of them almost as much as I do."

Her heart raced madly in her chest hearing such high praise from her master.

"It is far better to be feared then loved my Lord," she said playfully.

It was the truth, though; no matter how wonderful love was you could always accomplish more with fear which made it far more useful.

The Dark Lord smiled broadly, "I most certainly agree my dear." He said proudly continuing to walk with her until they eventually made their way back into the main room.

Once inside the Dark Lord took her empty glass away placing it on a nearby table before leading her back out onto the dance floor. They danced together into the wee hours of the morning the smile never fading from Bellatrix's red wine painted lips. Finally, when almost had everyone had left her master pulled his mask up and kissed her softly on the hand before disapparating. She lingered there a moment, her heart still racing in her chest, before she turned to leave. Somehow she managed to sneak out of the dining room and upstairs to her room without running into anyone. She fell into bed her mind racing, never knowing what was going on in her master's head. She soon slipped into sweet dreams, the smile never leaving her lips.


	13. Chapter 13

Bellatrix had never smiled so much in her entire life, even when she woke up the next morning there was still a happy grin on her lips. Today things were supposed to go back to normal and she wondered how many death eaters were going to show up for training this morning hung over. She quickly dressed and ran downstairs for breakfast. As soon as she walked into the room her sister and brother-in-law gave her funny looks.

"Someone had a good time last night," Lucius said playfully. Narcissa shot him a dark look as Bella took her seat next to her.

"So who was that you danced the night away with?" Narcissa asked. She should have known that this was going to be brought up. How did they not know the Dark Lord himself was at their party?

"The Dark Lord, of course," she said proudly her smile still plastered on her lips. The look on their faces said it all, speechless. "So yes Lucius, I did have a good time last night," she added playfully as she turned her focus onto her breakfast.

She wondered how many more times she was going to be asked who she was with last night, as it was clearly not her husband, and if her husband was going to say anything to her about it. She had not really thought about it. Even though her marriage was not normal she never flaunted that in public until last night. It was different, though, he was their master and clearly if he asked something of her she was obliged to do so. Though she probably enjoyed it all too much. This was much more than she wanted to think about so early in the morning. She shook the thoughts from her head as she ate as quickly as she could.

Narcissa finally regained her ability to speak, "I did not think he would come down for the ball, I'm glad he did."

Bella looked up at her, eyes wide, "What do you mean to come down?" Was her sister really implying what she sounded like she was implying?

Lucius laughed and shook his head, "He has only been staying here since June Bella." It all made so much sense, she could not believe she had not come to the conclusion months ago.

After she finished breakfast she made her way down to the cellar for her first round of training. This would be the group with all of the hung over newbies in it and she was a little too excited to torture them. Her mind was a beautifully sick place. She was shocked when she entered the cellar and did not see anyone. She frowned, her wand out and ready. One great benefit of being in Azkaban for 13 years was that she could see excellent in the dark. In the furthest corner, she saw something move and without hesitation shot a bright red light from her wand. Bellatrix was not one for taking chances, especially when she was expecting a room full of wizards. Whoever was hiding in the dark blocked her spell, but did not cast anything back.

"Always on point my dear Bella," her master's cool voice echoed from the corner.

"My Lord, I did not expect you down here," she said bowing her head and her master approached.

He moved fluently through the room until he was standing next to her, her dark eyes looking up at him.

"What fun would it be if you expected me?" her master laughed, "I sent your trainees away for the day. We have plans to discuss."

He turned and started out of the room, Bella quickly following at his heels. They moved through the manor and into a room that she had not been into before. She followed him faithfully into the unknown room which she quickly realized was a private study, her master's private study. He sat down on a plush green sofa and gestured for her to sit down next to him. She did so quickly wondering what her master was planning, what was going on beneath his icy eyes.

"Our plans are coming together quickly," he began, "I was informed this morning that Draco has successfully minded the vanishing cabinet hidden at Hogwarts. So when the time comes, I would like you and a few other loyal followers to head to Borgin and Burkes and use the vanishing cabinet to gain access to the school. I would like Draco and Severus to have backup in case they cannot manage killing Dumbledore by themselves. Once Dumbledore has been killed I expect the Minster to resign, but if he does not I would like you to be the one to kill him."

A wicked smile played on her lips, "Yes my Lord," she said happily bowing her head to her master.

He smiled back at her as he continued, "Then after all of that is taken care of I expect a lot shall change. Maybe then I will be able to reward you properly. After all, my most loyal and most powerful servant deserves something special and you cannot tell me otherwise." His smile stayed on his face as he looked into her eyes, "That's all for now," he finished, dismissing her as he got to his feet.

"Yes my Lord," she said bowing her head before standing and striding out of her master's study.

She did not know that she could feel so happy. She wandered through the house with her head in the clouds completely oblivious to the world around her. Soon enough she found herself in the library which had become her hideaway here in the manor. Other than her room this was one of the only places she could usually be alone. She curled up in her usual chair picking up the book she had been reading last trying to read but was too lost in her thoughts to get very far. She did not know how long she was there pretending to read before she heard the door creak open. Her head spun around to look at the door only to find Rodolphus slinking into the room.

She sighed crossing her arms in front of her, "What do you want Rodolphus," her words were sharp.

Her intent was clear and Rodolphus's eyes immediately moved to the floor but only for a moment before he managed to find his courage, "I just wanted to talk to you about last night." Bellatrix rolled her eyes but she knew that this was coming.

"What do you want to talk about? How I spent the evening with the Dark Lord?" she started harshly, "Is poor Rodolphus jealous that our Lord danced with me." Her words were child-like, mocking his pathetic nature. "Am I not his right hand? Who else would the Dark Lord dance with?" She was clearly angered by her husband's stupid questions and was trying really hard not to curse him until he regained his senses.

The defeat was written all over her husband's face, he knew better, "I just did not know that you and the Dark Lord were so close." Bellatrix forced herself not to crack a smile, she was becoming extremely close to their master and absolutely loved it.

"Either did, I but I will be as close to the Dark Lord as he requires of me," her words were final on the subject and Rodolphus knew it.

He nodded his head and turned and walked out, defeated. She felt a twinge of guilt, but only for the briefest of moments. While their marriage had never been conventional they were much closer all those years ago. Part of her felt bad that she could not go back to that, but at the same time, they had been separated for 13 years. Any softness she had for him was lost while she was in Azkaban and she knew, now more than ever, that it would never return. A tiny part of her almost felt bad that she could not pretend to care for him more but the other, much larger, part of her was angry at him for expecting her to. How dare her expect that of her. She sighed angrily slamming her book down on the end table as she stood up. If he was not useful to her master she would have killed him and put him out of his misery. She stormed out of the library and outside to find something to take her frustration out on. Leave it to Rodolphus to ruin her good mood.


	14. Chapter 14

That morning started off like any other morning in Malfoy Manor for Bellatrix. She woke up early to eat breakfast before training the ever growing number of new members of their inner circle. It was well into November and the crisp fall weather was quickly giving way to the winter cold. She sighed softly as her dark eyes gazed out of a foggy window onto the grounds of the manor. Bellatrix did not care for the cold much these days, it reminded her too much of Azkaban. She was growing weary waiting for the order from the Dark Lord while everyone else was having fun causing mayhem in the muggle world she was here waiting. She knew that she was only here training everyone because she was the most talented of her master's followers and her next orders would be well worth the wait but that did not make her any more patient. She had the rest of the day to herself and she had no idea what she was supposed to do to pass the time. Since she arrived here almost five months ago she had read every book in the library, some several times, and now that winter was approaching she could not hide away outside either. Even though she was out of prison, she was still in a prison of sorts. She was stuck inside the wall of the manor unless given permission to sneak out. Another sigh escaped her lips as she continued walking through the halls of the manor. She eventually found herself flopped down in a sofa with that morning's edition of the Daily Prophet. Her eyes quickly scanned the pages, a wicked smile on her lips as she read about the various deaths, disappearances and other various disasters that her fellow death eaters had caused. She was very proud to be the one behind their success, the power was intoxicating. It was almost as good as if she had been the one to do it herself but sadly she had not and was longing for the chance. She wanted out of these walls and her wand pointed at some pathetic individual their screams filling the air as she cursed them into insanity.

Bellatrix eventually drifted off to sleep while she dreamed of torturing and killing people; setting their homes on fire while she laughed. She was startled awake by the touch of a cold hand on hers, her eyes opened widely as she looked into the face of her master. Once her mind had time to process and her breathing returned to normal she smiled.

"My Lord," she said searching his cold eyes.

"You have such beautiful dreams, Bella," he said softly. He had brought a chair over and was sitting next to her, his hand still resting softly on hers. "Tonight, my dear."

That was all she needed to hear. Tonight she would go to Hogwarts and help Draco, and Snape, kill Dumbledore. Her heart was racing excitedly and a sick smile playing across her lips.

"Yes my Lord," she said her eyes never leaving his.

She was enjoying finding herself in these strange situations with her master, her longing for him growing with every encounter. Voldemort was the only person she loved more than she loved herself and he was the only thing she longed for more than torturing and killing. He was her greatest desire and although she knew better, these recent encounters with her master certainly allowed her mind to wander.

Her master smiled down at her, "At sunset you will travel to Borgin and Burkes and use the vanishing cabinet to gain access to Hogwarts. Should I let Rodolphus and Rabastan know to join you tonight?"

She nodded her head, "Yes. Thank you my Lord."

Sometimes she hated being associated with her husband but he and his brother were certainly two of the most loyal servants the Dark Lord had. They were the ones who stuck by her while she looked for him after he disappeared and were imprisoned for doing so. They were the only ones she trusted not to falter by her side. Without another word her master removed his hand from hers and disapparated. She sat there only for a moment, relishing in his touch, before sitting up and getting to her feet. This would be her first time in Hogwarts since she graduated 26 years ago. If she did not feel old enough normally she certainly did now.

The rest of the day could not go any slower and her attempts at wasting time were falling short. She was eating dinner early, alone in the dining room. Her fork was aimlessly pushing her food around her plate as her mind was already focused on the task at hand. She was hoping that Rodolphus and Rabastan would meet her here but clearly they were not going to. Thankfully it was not like they needed much of a plan. Once they were inside they were to meet Draco in the astronomy tower and even, after all, their time away the astronomy tower would be where it always was. Finally, when she had managed to eat all that she could she cleared her plate she disapparated from the dining room.

When she next opened her eyes she was standing in the dark alleyway in front of Borgin and Burkes. Her hood was pulled up hiding her face, she was not safe anywhere outside of the manor. She looked around before making her way into the shop where thankfully Rodolphus and Rabastan were already waiting. She lowered her hood as she looked at them.

"Shall we?" she asked in a sickly playful way as she made her way over to the large vanishing cabinet.

She held open the door, a beautifully sick smile unfading from her lips as she waited for the boys to climb inside. The next moment they were stepping out in the room of requirement and it was taking all of her effort not to laugh. She was so excited it was probably extremely unhealthy. From here it was just a short ways to the astronomy tower, but one could not be too careful. The boys had placed their silver masks on and all three had their wands out and ready. Bellatrix had not worn her mask since before Azkaban and she had no intentions of ever wearing it again. She had no reason to hide her face, she was proud of everything she did in the name of the Dark Lord. She led the way out of the room as they proudly marched through the corridors and up the stairs. They could already hear voices as they made their way quickly up the stairs; Bellatrix at the lead. As they reached the top step and rounded the corner they saw Draco standing wand pointed at the headmaster. Her wicked smile grew as she approached her nephew.

"Do it Draco," she exclaimed when she could not restrain her excitement any longer. She stood behind him, her head resting on his shoulder, "This is what we trained for, you can do this," she whispered in his ear before giving him a kiss on the check.

Her wicked smile reappeared on her lips as she moved, circling the situation like a vulture.

"Ah Bellatrix, excited are we?" Dumbledore mocked but Bellatrix just stopped and raised her wand as well.

"Now Draco, you are wasting time!" she snapped, not taking her eyes off of the headmaster. Snape had finally joined them, surveying the situation from the back of the group. "Do it now or I will!" she added hastily. She wanted blood and she wanted it now.

Then with no warning Draco shouted, "Avada Kedavra!" and the familiar green jet of light shot from his wand hitting the headmaster who slumped to the floor.

Through her wicked smile her jaw hung open, she was absolutely completely shocked that precious little Draco had the guts to actually do it. She laughed wickedly once the situation finally had time to sink in.

"Check and make sure he's dead," she shouted to Rodolphus who quickly ran over to check the corpse.

You had to really mean it for a curse to take full effect and while Draco had certainly proven he had guts that did not mean that he meant it. Rodolphus turned after checking the headmaster's pulse and nodded. This sent Bellatrix into gleeful hysterics. She bounded over and hugged her nephew before moving over to the edge and pointing her wand up to the sky sending the dark mark into the sky above.

She laughed as they started to flee the grounds of the school into the forbidden forest where they could apparate again. She took Draco's hand as they flew out of the tower and onto the grounds below. As soon as their feet hit the floor she was skipping and laughing madly, her wand out setting fire to anything that she could manage. Hagrid's hut went up in flames as well as part of the forbidden forest and anything else living around it. Tonight was proving much more fun than even she thought it would be. Once they were safe inside the forest she once again took Draco's hand and apparated back to the manor. Now it was time to celebrate and wait as patiently as she could for her next assignment.


	15. Chapter 15

The celebration lasted long into the night. Upon arriving back at Malfoy, Manor Bellatrix had insisted that they celebrate that evening's success. With no one willing to openly oppose her the Malfoy's kicked off the party with a toast to their son. After that, the night was a blur to Bellatrix who in her excitement drank the night away. There was no telling how late it was or even where she was when she was scooped up off the couch she had passed out on. Instinctually she wrapped her arms around whoever was holding her and buried her head into their chest. She was too intoxicated to care who it was, she knew she was safe here and even if she was not she was too drunk to do anything about it. Maybe letting herself get into such a state was a little too careless but there was nothing she could do about it now. She was carried through the manor, up the stairs and into her room where she was placed softly onto her bed. Only then did she open her dark eyes to see her master standing above her.

A rush of fear passed over her, "My Lord," she managed to mumble.

Her slurred words were met with a smile, "It's okay," he spoke softly pushing a strand of hair away from her face.

She smiled broadly and she curled up on the soft bed, the brief rush of fear completely gone. "Thank you, master," she beamed sweetly looking up at him; there was no hiding her affections in such a state.

"Someone has to look after you," he said matter-of-factly.

Usually, Rodolphus was the one keeping an eye on her, one of the only useful things he did as her husband. If she would not have had been so far gone she would have wondered what happened to him tonight. It was rare for her to be left lying around in such a state, it must have been one heck of a party.

The Dark Lord leaned down and whispered softly in her ear, "Good job tonight Bella. Without you, I doubt the mission would have been successful."

Her smile grew and her face blushed at her master's words, completely unable to hide her emotions. Before she had time to attempt to reply he spoke again.

"Now sleep my dear," before turning and heading for the door.

She looked after him longingly, even as drunk as she was she knew better than to ask for what she wanted. Somehow though she thought that maybe he already knew. He turned and looked back at her, her eyes longing for him to come back and to stay with her. The next thing she knew he was sitting beside her on the bed, looking down at her. Maybe she was in too sorry of a state to be left on her own, but maybe he wanted to stay with her. There was no telling at this point, and she really did not care either way. Eventually, she fell asleep under her master's watchful gaze, his hand running soothingly through her long hair.

She woke up sometime the next day, the sun streaming in through her window. She winced at the bright light, a throbbing pain in her head. She reached around aimlessly trying to find her wand, finally grabbing it off of the nightstand and using it to close the curtains over the window. Now with the light dim in the room, she looked around properly. She was alone in her room, which should not have seemed so shocking, and placed on the nightstand next to her were two small vials and a glass of water. She smiled as she reached for the vials, drinking them one after the other before drinking the glass of water. She laid back down, trying to remember as much as she could from the night before. There were very few memories coming back to her, and the ones that did she was not sure how real they were. A few minutes later her headache was gone and she slowly got out of bed and headed for the kitchen. She needed something to get the taste of fire whiskey out of her mouth and to soak up what was left in her stomach. She was thankful to not run into anyone on her way downstairs, she was not ready to deal with people. She really was not ready to deal with anything but allowed the house elves to fuss over her as she pulled up a chair to the kitchen counter. There was no way she was going to be able to eat a lot but she had to eat something.

After she managed to get something down she slipped off to her usual hiding spot in the library. She wanted to have her senses about her before she started trying to piece together last night's events. She stayed hidden away for some time, listening to the occasional person pass in front of the double doors. She was happy hidden away amongst the old books, alone with just her thoughts and a good book, even if she had read it a hundred times.

She eventually dozed off curled up in her high-backed chair, book in hand. There was no telling how long she had been asleep when she was suddenly woken by the sound of her name and a hand on her arm. She jumped up wand out and ready when she realized that it was only Rodolphus, who was now looking extremely pitiful.

"I'm sorry to have startled you," he stammered quickly. Bellatrix took a deep breath before lowering her wand and placing it back in her robes.

"What do you want?" she replied shortly glaring at him.

"I just came to see how you were doing after last night," he said meekly as she rolled her eyes and flopped back down into her chair.

"I'm fine, clearly," she said trying not to be as mad at him. She almost felt bad about how cruel she could be to him, almost.

Rodolphus took a seat next to her, "That's good," he nodded pausing for a little longer than he should, "Rabastan said he saw you get carried up to your room last night."

With his last statement, Bellatrix finally lost her temper, "So what!?" she screeched. "Did dear old Rabastan happen to tell you who it was who carried my sorry drunk self up to my room? It was the Dark Lord himself, looking after his most loyal servant. You are pathetic! I really do not like this jealous side of you, Rodolphus."

Bellatrix took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down before she really lost it on her pathetic 'husband'. Maybe she should just divorce him and put him out of his misery. It is not like they were going to reproduce and carry on their pure bloodlines like their families intended. If she did not leave now she might do something that she would almost regret, so without another word she stood up and stormed out of the room. Who the hell did that little prick think he was?! She was so angry she almost did not feel the burning across her left forearm. When it finally registered she pulled her sleeve up, looking at the burning dark mark on her arm, a wicked smile growing on her lips before she disapparated.

The next thing she knew she was standing the formal dining room which was quickly filling up with her fellow members of the Dark Lord's inner circle. She quickly took her place on the right-hand side of her master, looking around the room at the faces who were slowly taking their places around the table. Their numbers were certainly growing, there were many new faces sitting around the table than there had been back in August. She recognized most people from her various training groups but there were a few she had never laid her eyes upon. Her nephew Draco was smiling smugly next to her sister and Lucius, who also looked quite proud as he should be. Rodolphus was sitting across the table next to his brother who was giving Bella a dirty look. She just grinned wider, if Rabastan would have just kept his stupid mouth shut she would not have had to be so cruel to his brother. She was glad that she did not have to sit near him, after today's incident she wanted as little to do with the two of them as possible. Finally, the last of their inner circle had taken their seats around the large table and her master began the meeting.

"In the next few weeks the ministry will fall and when it does we will not only take control of the ministry but of Hogwarts as well. All of our plans for the ministry are lined up and ready to go. As for Hogwarts, Severus you will become headmaster and I will allow you to appoint teachers as you see fit. Except for muggle studies, which we shall be removing from the curriculum," he said laughing madly.

Bellatrix joined in with her maddening cackle with the rest of the room. She loved hearing her master laugh, who was she kidding, she loved everything about him.

"That is all for now, we will be seeing each other soon," her master's voice broke the laughter and he disapparated leaving his followers behind.

She hated the emptiness that lingered after her master would leave, but this was not the time to linger in his absence. While she was in a much better mood she was still in no mood to deal with her 'husband' and his brother. Before anyone had a chance to talk to her she disapparated. She needed dinner and rest, tomorrow was going to be a much more trying day. Life was finally getting more interesting.


	16. Chapter 16

The next morning the manor was filled with a new energy, they were so close to having control of the British wizarding world. It would not be much longer, a few weeks at most, and then the rest of the world would fall in turn. Bella floated into the small dining room for breakfast where the Malfoy's were already sitting. She joined them with an oddly pleasant smile on her lips which was met by a playfully raised eyebrow from her brother-in-law, Lucius.

"Good Morning, Bella," he said almost too cheerfully for her tastes.

"Good Morning Lucius, Cissy, Draco," she spoke to each member of her little family before turning her attention to the plate in front of her.

She did not have much time to eat before having to go to her first training session of the day. She could not wait to see the energy level of their newest, they would be put through their paces to make sure that they were not becoming too cocky. They had all been doing so well that Bellatrix was really rather proud of them. Breakfast went as breakfasts normally did though it was a pleasant change to have her nephew Draco home with them. She loved his newly found confidence after successfully completing his task. He might be a little full of himself but that was not necessarily a bad thing. Confidence was a trait that, to Bella, could not be more important.

As her day continued her pride swelled. She was so incredibly proud of their followers. The morning's training session was easily the best on that they had so far. In the afternoon's group, Draco joined in and was continuing to impress her. For a mere boy of 15, he was becoming quite an extraordinary wizard; Bella was contributing that success to her wonderful teaching abilities. Yes by the end of the afternoon Bella was about as full of herself as one could be. As the evening approached Bellatrix lounged lazily on a chase in the sitting room. Her long dark hair spilled off the side and onto the wood floor beneath her. She had decided to stop training with Rodolphus and Rabastan for the time being, so as far as she was concerned she was done for the day. Now all that was left was to enjoy some relaxing time alone. She was running her long silvery grey fingernails through her thick hair when she felt the air in the room change. She sat up quickly only to find the figure of her master gracefully gliding over to her. She smiled, trying not to look too excited to see him.

"My Lord," she said bowing her head to the Dark Lord.

He smiled, his hand brushing against her check before using a finger to raise her chin until her eyes met him. Her heart skipped a beat as his skin touched hers, her large dark eyes now searching his icy ones. She knew that she would never know what was going on behind his eyes, but that did not stop her from trying. He smiled at her looking deep into her dark eyes.

"My dear Bella. You see I was going to wait and just let the minister resign but I think it would be more effective if we kill him." Bellatrix hung on every word her smile growing as her master spoke and nodding her head eagerly in agreement.

"When would you like him killed my Lord?" she asked excitedly, more than ready for the task at hand.

"Tonight, I will come and get you when it is time." That was all she needed to hear, not only was she going to be allowed to kill the minister but she was going to get to do so with the Dark Lord himself. What an honor this night was going to be, as long as everything went properly.

"Yes my Lord," she said as she bowed her head, failing to hide her excitement.

With that he was gone, leaving Bella to wait eagerly for tonight. There was no telling when her master would come for her so she rushed upstairs and got ready. Not like she had much to do, but she wanted to freshen up and grab her winter cloak. It was growing colder by the day and she did not want to be caught without her winter cloak.

The day dragged on into the evening and by the time she went down to dinner Bellatrix was beyond anxious. She was so excited and so ready to go she could hardly contain herself, let alone eat and hold a normal conversation. Her sister noticed as soon as she joined them for dinner and she knew that something was going on. After being in the Dark Lord's inner circle for so long, Narcissa knew better than to pry when her sister had that excitedly murderous look in her eyes but she did need to talk to her.

"Rodolphus was looking for you earlier," Narcissa said as nonchalantly as she could.

It was returned with an equally nonchalant, "I'm sure he was." That man made Bella's blood boil and if he did not back off quickly he was going to find himself in a very bad situation.

It was more than obvious to everyone that knew them how little Bellatrix cared for her husband and how her husband, despite her cruelness, loved her unwaveringly. Narcissa was never able to understand her sister's indifference but she had learned to leave it alone. The rest of dinner stayed pretty quiet, just the usual mundane dinner conversation. Bella finished her dinner quickly before anyone could bring up anything else about her unconventional marriage and hurried upstairs to her room. Since it was obvious that she would not be able to waste time with her family without having them damper the mood, she would have to just wait alone. Her room seemed to be the only place she was safe from unwelcome visitors.

It must have been late into the night when she felt the burn of her mark across her left forearm. She had not even realized that she had drifted off to sleep, but the burning in her arm snapped her back to reality. Her master was calling her, the thought alone made her heart leap. She smiled wickedly as she threw on her thick black traveling cloak, ran her hand through her long curly hair and apparated to her master's side. Upon her arrival, she looked over to her left and was pleased to see the Dark Lord standing beside her. They appeared to be standing in the shadows of an icy alleyway in a seemingly small village. Her heart was racing.

"My Lord," she said softly her breath clearly visible on this cold night.

A wicked smile crept onto her master's face, "Shall we?"

Her smile grew as she followed after the Dark Lord as he made his way out onto the street. She could hardly contain her excitement as they strode through the village and up the front path to a rather unassuming home. It was a simple little home, one that Bella did not see as grand enough for the Minister of Magic to reside in. To each his own she thought as her master swung open the front door. It was very late and she was assuming that the minister as his wife were most likely in bed. Her large eyes darted around taking in as much as she could while keeping her master in her sights. They crept quietly up the stairs and down the hall to the door that led to the minister's bedroom. She could hardly contain herself and when she felt like she would surely burst her master blew the door off its hinges. Bellatrix cackled widely wasting no time sending a cruciatus curse flying after the occupants of the room. The jet of red light hit the minister's wife square in the chest, her screams filling the air before the dust had even settled. As she entered the room she sent another jet of red light at the minister's wife who was writhing in agony on their bed, the minister in tears pleading for them to stop. Oh, how Bella loved it when her victims begged, it made the torture so much more enjoyable. Her laughter grew wilder as the minister's wife's screams grew louder. Sweet old Cornelius Fudge was pleading with the Dark Lord to end his wife's suffering, and Voldemort being a merciful Lord obliged. The Dark Lord turned his wand to the minister's wife and sent a jet of green light flying at her, killing her instantly. The only thing Bellatrix loved more than killing people herself was watching her master kill people. She quickly turned her attention back to the minister and her master, resisting the urge to prematurely celebrate their first kill. The minister was sobbing now, muttering his wife's name and holding her in his arms. It was all so pathetic that she was quickly losing interest in the whole affair, having thought that killing the Minister of Magic would be accompanied by a decent duel. She pursed her lips looking up into her master's eyes, asking for permission to carry out her assignment. She need not wait long as Voldemort's eyes met hers, clearly he was as disappointed in the minister's behavior as she was. Without a second glance, she cast the killing curse and the minister fell silent, his lifeless body still wrapped around his lifeless wife. The minister had certainly been a buzz kill but they accomplished what they had sat out to do, and touching her wand to her arm she sent the dark mark into the sky above the house. The ministry was theirs now. Just as her eyes had once again made contact with the Dark Lord's she heard a pop from downstairs. Her eyes widened quickly as it was soon obvious that aurors were beginning to arrive. Before she had time to react her master wrapped her in his arms and disapparated.


	17. Chapter 17

Shock might be the proper word to describe Bella's current state. She had been ready for a fight, maybe even longing for it after such a lackluster murder. To be taken away from it was one thing, but to be swept away in her master's arms was most certainly another. There was not even enough time for her to process what had just happened as she was now standing in her room back at Malfoy Manor with her master's arms still around her. He held on to her for a moment before finally loosening his grasp on her waist. She spun around looking up into his eyes their bodies almost touching once more. His eyes were skillfully hiding whatever feelings lurked just below the surface and although it was all she could think about she knew better than to ask. Thankfully her master's words broke the silence.

"Good job tonight, Bella. I am sorry it could not have been more, challenging." She bowed her head, only break eye contact for a moment.

"Thank you, my Lord. It is always a pleasure to accompany you." The Dark Lord smiled his beautifully wicked smile and Bella's heart leaped as it always did when her master smiled at her.

"Your loyalty will be rewarded, soon," he said as he brushed his hand across her cheek.

Her heart skipped a beat as his skin met hers, her eyes locked onto his. Had her master not rewarded her enough? She was perfectly content serving as his right hand and proud to be his best lieutenant. There was only one thing that she longed for and although she knew that her master would never be hers like she was his when he was this close it was impossible to push such feelings from her mind.

"It is becoming clearer what would be a worthy reward for my most loyal servant, my best lieutenant," he said with a grin on his pale face.

"You have rewarded me again and again. Pleasing you my Lord has always been reward enough," she spoke truthfully watching him closely.

"Well then, my dear Bella, it pleases me to be able to reward my most faithful again and again," he hissed softly, his words strangely seductive.

He gave her no time to reply before he pulled her close into the most lustfully passionate kiss that Bellatrix had ever received. Her heart leaped and swelled, a million butterflies erupting within her and spreading to every inch of her body. Then as quickly as it had begun he pulled away and disapparated without another word, leaving Bella speechless. Shock was most certainly and understatement for the state that Bellatrix was in.

Never in her wildest dreams, well actually in all of her wildest dreams, had she truly thought that could anything like that night would ever happen. She did not only torture the minister's wife and murder the minister, but her master swept her away and kissed her. It was like a fairytale, and this renewed her spirit in a way that nothing had ever done before.

The following weeks passed smoothly on the wake of Bellatrix's unbreakable high. Pius was elected as the new Minister of Magic and had begun a new era for the wizarding world. There was now a mandatory muggle born registration and everyone who worked at the Ministry was under investigation. The Auror office had been shut down and the Order of the Phoenix had gone into hiding and muggle sympathizers were being hunted down one by one. Bellatrix was still being kept safe and sound in Malfoy Manor, but she was hopeful now that they had control of the Ministry that she would be allowed out more. She was aching for a piece of the action, but she knew that she was to truly be rewarded beyond her wildest dreams if she just did as she was told. The hope that she would be allowed another intimate moment with her master was the fuel that was keeping her going until her next assignment. Everyone else had noticed her euphoria, but they thankfully assumed that it was because she killed the minister, which she was still boasting about weeks later. She knew that what had happened between her and the Dark Lord was not to be shared, and she was not going to mess her chance with him up.

It was now well into December and the grounds of the manor were covered in a thick blanket of snow. Even though she was not fond of the cold the snow looked rather beautiful across the perfectly manicured grounds of the manor. Tonight was Christmas Eve. This would be her first Christmas with her family in 13 years, and while she was thrilled to be able to spend it with her family, she wanted nothing more than to spend it with her master. She wondered what her master would be doing for the holidays, but she shook the thought from her mind quickly as she paced around the empty halls of the manor. The Dark Lord was often on her mind, but she was certainly thinking about him more and more since their last encounter. She stopped, looking over the dark grounds outside, willing herself to be tired so she could wake up early tomorrow. Her mind was racing and even as a skilled Occlumens she was having a hard time clearing it.

"Get it together," she muttered harshly to herself.

She needed to get her act together and quickly. She closed her eyes and spent the next several minutes trying to close her mind. Just as she managed to push away all of the lingering thoughts of her master her left forearm began to burn and her dark eyes flew open. Her heart raced as she pulled up her sleeve and apparated in a whirl unsure of what she might find when she arrived. As her eyes opened again she found herself in the formal dining room of the manor, where there was clearly to be a meeting.

A prideful grin played across lips as she made her way to her seat to the right of the Dark Lord. She had not seen her master since the night she killed the minister and was trying her hardest not to be awkward. Her brain was on full overdrive, conveniently overthinking everything she did just like a love sick little school girl. Pull it together she thought to herself over and over again. She was thankful that her fellow death eaters were arriving promptly so she would not have to sit here in silence for too horribly long. When everyone had taken their seats around the long table her master began.

"I would like to congratulate our members of the Ministry on the progress they are making now that the Ministry is fully under our control. I would also like to congratulate Severus on his appointment to headmaster and Rodolphus and Rabastan as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potions professors at Hogwarts." He paused momentarily while the room applauded and Bellatrix tried to hide the shocked look on her face.

She had not seen hide nor hair of her 'husband' or his brother since the last meeting. While she was still cross with him she felt oddly left out. She looked at him hoping for his eyes to meet hers, but they seemed to look everywhere but at her.

"We now have full control over Wizarding Britain and to celebrate," the Dark Lord said as he flicked his wand above his head ushering in the floating body of a worn looking witch. "This is Ms. Charity Burbage who will be the last Professor to ever teach Muggle Studies at Hogwarts. It is her belief that muggles are not so different from us. She would even have us mate with them she had her way," the Dark Lord's face was clearly disgusted as was everyone who was sitting around the table.

Bella audibly showed her disgust, sticking out her tongue and Ewing, like a child would before giggling madly. The woman was crying silently her eyes looking pleadingly at Severus who was, as always, stone featured.

The Dark Lord turned and looked at Bellatrix and smiled darkly, "Bellatrix, please show our guest how such thinking is handled."

A sick grin danced across her lips as she quickly drew her wand up and cast a hot red jet directly at the suspended witch. Screams erupted from the former professor as she writhed and flailed wildly, still suspended above the table. Her fellow death eaters looked on coldly, her master's lips curved in a smile as another jet of red light erupted from the tip of Bella's wand. The room was filled with cries of agony and Bella's manic laughter that grew as she sent curse after curse at the helpless woman.

As the muggle lover reached the point of insanity the Dark Lord shouted "Avada Kedavra!" The hot jet of green light hit the woman and her lifeless body hit the table with a heavy thud.

For a brief moment worry spread through her but at the sight of the evil grin on her master's face it left her mind as quickly as it had entered. The Dark Lord moved his hand, offering the corpse to the giant snake that laid curled up and his side. Nagini hissed softly as she made her way up onto the table, carefully investigating the body before opening her mouth and beginning to devour her whole. Bellatrix was unable to hide her madness as she giggled psychotically. The power her master gave her was intoxicating and she only saw greatness in their future as her master continued to take over the Wizarding world with her by his side. What wonderful times these were.


	18. Chapter 18

The soft knocking on the door to Bellatrix's bedroom stirred her awake.

"Bella, you awake?" her sister's voice came from the other side of the closed door.

She sat up sleepily, "Of course. What is it Cissy?" she called groggily resting her hand on her forehead for support.

"I just wanted to see if you were going to come down and open Christmas presents with us," Narcissa said muffled by the wood door between them.

"Christmas," Bella muttered softly before her brain processed the word and her eyes flew open wide. She had no idea how much she loved Christmas until she did not have it. "Christmas! Hold on!" she shouted the excitement clearly audible.

Bellatrix flew out of bed and threw her silky black dressing gown over her pajamas and opened the door. One of the things she loved about Christmas the most was being able to stay in her pajamas all morning. A large smile was painted across her lips as her eyes met her sister's.

"Happy Christmas Cissy!" she exclaimed as she hugged her sister tightly.

"Happy Christmas Bella!" Narcissa said as she hugged her sister back. "Shall we head down?" she asked gesturing down to the sitting room.

Bella nodded excitedly as the pair headed downstairs to where the rest of the Malfoy family was waiting. Narcissa had stayed up late to finish decorating after the meeting last night and it definitely paid off. The sitting room looked completely different, a large tree sitting in the corner covered in twinkling lights and decorations. Under the tree was stacked with shiny wrapped presents, most of them, Bellatrix assumed were for her nephew Draco.

"Happy Christmas!" Bella exclaimed as her and her sister entered the room.

It was obvious that Lucius and Draco were slightly taken aback by her uncharacteristic cheer but smiled and returned the greeting. She took a seat on one of the plush chairs and watched as her family began to exchange presents, but mostly as Draco unwrapped the majority from his parents. She knew Draco had always been spoiled but this year even more so because he had killed Dumbledore. Eventually, even Draco's mountain of presents dwindled down. As Bellatrix was stuck inside the manor and Narcissa did not need any more stuff the sister's had agreed on not exchanging gifts this year, so she was surprised when Narcissa handed her a plainly wrapped box from under the tree.

"Cissy! We said no presents!" Bella exclaimed with a slight frown on her face. She felt terrible now that she did not find a way to get her sister something.

Narcissa smiled and shook her head, "It's not from me. Actually, I'm not sure who it's from."

Bella looked down at the package in her hand, wrapped in plain black paper with her name written in silver letters on it. She eyed her sister skeptically as she tore off the paper and opened the box carefully. Inside, wrapped in a piece of emerald velvet, was the most beautiful silver dagger Bellatrix had ever seen. The knife hilt was made of bone that had a serpent carved into it with emeralds for eyes. She picked it up, examining the blade carefully, it must have been incredibly old and it clearly had seen magic. Bella looked up at her sister with wide eyes who knowingly shook her head from side to side and gave her a simple shrug.

The rest of the day went smoother than any family holiday that Bellatrix had any recollection of. She spent the whole day with her family though she did eventually change out of her pajamas and into her robes. She tucked her new knife into the pocket next to where she kept her wand. There was no point in owning such a fine blade if it was never with her to use. After a large Christmas dinner, Narcissa and Lucius opened a barrel of mead from the family's private store to continue the celebration. Bella was thankful for the company, her family kept her mind from wandering too much. Somewhere, deep down, she was rather hopeful that she would get to spend some time with her master. She knew what an insane idea it was, but she could not help but think it. Narcissa and Lucius were dancing to music playing over the wireless that Draco had pulled out. Draco was sitting next to Bella, who was almost as drunk as her sister and brother-in-law, and was clapping along with the beat of the song and laughing along with his aunt. It was hard to think of her longing when she was having so much fun but at the same time, it made her long for her master more. She was always sure that she would die in service to the Dark Lord but now she thought the longing might do her in. She absolutely loved it and was privileged to have whatever moments her master gave her.

The fact that Rodolphus had not been brought up the entire day was even more of a blessing. Part of her felt bad as the two of them had always worked very well together. The other part of her was ready to sever the ties for good, he acted like the last 13 years had not happened and everything was to be as it was. As much as she would love to, Bellatrix would never be able to put the past 13 years behind her. She would move on, but her time in Azkaban would always be in the farthest depths of her mind. Part of her wondered what he was up to today, but really she was glad he did not come and ruin her first Christmas back.

Her family's drunk antics carried on, all four of them now up and dancing around the formal dining room. The only light in the room was from the roaring fire and a few scattered lamps around the large room. It was an absolutely beautiful way to end the day's festivities.

In the height of their drunken festivities, Bella felt her forearm begin to tingle and burn. Her eyes widened as she looked around the room to see if Draco's or Lucius's marks were also calling them to their master's side. As her family continued on, her heart raced knowing that her master called for her alone. Her eyes darted around nervously as she needed an excuse to leave but was much too intoxicated to think anything remotely clever up.

Finally, she blurted out, "I'll be right back," and with a pop disapparated leaving her family staring at the spot she had just been standing.

She hoped that everyone was too drunk to get weird about her taking off like that. She did not have much of a choice, she would not keep her master waiting. The next moment she was standing in a poorly lit room, somewhere in the manor, it seemed by the view out the moonlight window. When her master did not immediately come into view she quickly turned on her heels searching for his image. It took only a quick turn before she saw his dark figure standing in front of a brightly lit fire. She smiled madly, way too drunk to hide the feelings she had for her master.

"Happy Christmas, my Lord," she beamed as she dashed over to her master's side.

He smiled at her, amused by her drunken state, "Happy Christmas, Bella," he said softly. "You have clearly enjoyed the day with your family," he added as she came to stand beside him.

She nodded happily, "Yes, my Lord. It has been a very nice day," her speech slightly slurred as her large dark eyes gazed up at him fondly.

He looked away from her and into the fire, "I was going to take you out this evening for a little bit of Christmas cheer, but you are in no state to be out in the open." An instant wave of sadness and guilt washed over her as she stood speechless at his side. The Dark Lord turned back to look at her, amused fondness on his face, "We will just have to go in the morning when you have had time to sleep it off."

Bella grinned broadly, "Thank you, my Lord," she said as she bowed her head.

Before she had time to raise her head back up her master had wrapped his arms around her and disapparated. The next thing she knew she was being scooped up and placed into a large bed, a bed that most certainly was not Bella's. Her eyes widened as they moved to search her master's face which was as ever unyielding. She would never know anything that he did not allow her, but that made the moments he allowed her mean that much more. Normally she would never be so forward with her master, but as she was drunk and lying next to him in what she assumed was his bed, she felt it worth the risk. She snuggled up to him, her head lying softly on his chest, a smile unfading from her lips. Voldemort closed his arm around her thin frame, keeping her close while she drifted off to sleep.


	19. Chapter 19

It must have only been around 3 or 4 in the morning when Bellatrix was woken by her master though it was probably only about 7 or 8 when she was swept off to bed.

"Bella, it's time to get up. Better grab your winter robe's as well," the Dark Lord hissed softly as he handed a glass of pumpkin juice to her.

A smile crossed her lips before her eyes had even had a chance to open; what she would not give to wake up like this every day. She took the glass as she sat up next to her master, taking a drink before running her other hand through her long curly hair.

"Yes, my Lord," she spoke softly as she stood up and hurried off to her room.

As she wandered down one of the corridors of the manor it took her several moments to gather her bearings and hurry to her own room. She quickly grabbed her thick winter robes and through them on over what she was already wearing, stopping to look herself over once in the mirror before slipping out of the room and back to her master. The Dark Lord was waiting for her just down the hallway, and as Bella approached she soon noticed he was standing under some of the mistletoe that Narcissa had hung up around the manor. She stood next to him looking at him for a moment before looking up at the mistletoe and back to him, one eyebrow raised slightly,

"Mistletoe, my Lord?" For the briefest moment, Bella thought that she almost saw him blush.

"So it seems. Narcissa certainly outdid herself with the decorations this year," he said matter-of-factly, clearly trying to ignore the look Bella was giving him.

After a short moment of silence between the two of them, he finally gave in and sighed deeply before leaning down and giving Bella a quick peck on the lips. His kiss sent Bella into a flurry of giddy happiness, it really was the little things.

"Shall we get going?" he asked rhetorically as he grabbed Bella's hand and disapparated.

They were now walking down a snowy street in a small muggle village, with their hoods hiding their faces from the unsuspecting passerby; not that any sane muggle would be out this time of night. It was still dark, if it were not for the dim street lights and twinkling strands of Christmas lights it would be pitch black. Bella's eyes looked around anxiously anticipating whatever her master had in store for her. After a short walk around the center of the village, they came to a small church decked to the nines in Christmas decorations. The Dark Lord stopped at the gates that stood at the entrance to the snow covered pathway leading up to the doors and looked over at Bellatrix. She looked back at him curiously before he finally spoke.

"This is the parish church of Ottery St. Catchpole where several of the staff reside. Several wizarding families live on the outskirts of this village that could use a reminder of our power a little closer to home." By the time her master finished speaking Bella's grin was wide across her face, the madness revealing itself behind her dark eyes. "But most importantly, have fun," he hissed as he motioned towards the church.

She could not contain the cackle that escaped her lips as she disappeared in a cloud of thick black smoke that wound and twist through the night sky and through a large stained glass window that promptly shattered. Upon landing inside the church Bellatrix's wand was drawn and she was hysterically breaking as many things as she could. She was certainly making enough noise to wake the muggle occupants and it hopefully would not be long before they came to investigate. Torturing and killing muggles were one of Bella's greatest joys, her master knew her too well. It was not too long before an elderly man in his night close approached her with a hand torch pointed at her. She assumed that he must be the caretaker, caretakers were usually the first to come investigate disturbances. With a flick of her wand, she sent the man soaring into the air, her laughter meeting his screams as she moved him helplessly through the air. When she inevitably grew bored of playing with the muggle she flicked her wand again leaving him dangling in the air by one of his ankles.

She cackled wickedly, "Don't worry now poor little muggle, I'll be back for you dearie," she spoke childishly as she continued skipping through the church on the hunt for more muggles.

It only took a few moments before she came across a short plump woman who by the looks of here must have been the caretaker's wife. Reflexively she flicked her wand sending the hot red jet of light streaming from her wand, hitting the unsuspecting muggle square in the chest. It was so much easier to torture muggles then wizards, the woman's screams echoing through the church. Bella continued [to laugh madly as the woman shrieked; she hoped that her screams would bring the other muggles to her so she would not have to spend too much time looking. Footsteps and shouts echoed through the stone corridors and she knew it would not be long before the rest of the staff made appearances. With another flick of her wand, she suspended the woman, who was still under the cruciatus cure, in the air and began spinning her around. Disturbing muggles was one of the best parts of torturing them. It was not long before another man appeared, mortified shock painted on his pale face. He began muttering and making the sign of the cross and it was very clear that he must be the priest. She flicked her wand and once again sent her favorite curse at the unsuspecting muggle. His cries were most satisfying so much so that Bella sent another jet of red light at him. She cursed him until he was curled into a ball sobbing weakly and only then did she end his worthless life. Another flick of her wand sent the corpse into the air and she floated both muggles into the room where she left the first one suspended by his ankle. His cries upon seeing the other two were what Bella had hoped for, this sent her back into maddening laughter. She threw the corpse of the priest across the room so he was laying sprawled across the altar, then turned her attention back to the two remaining muggles. The woman was already in pretty bad shape so she went ahead and cast the killing curse at her, causing her body to hand limply in the air. She cackled as the man sobbed hysterically, her attention once again fully focused on him. His face was bright red from being suspended upside down by his leg for such a long time. She flicked her wand and sent him crashing to the ground; by the sound, his body made upon meeting the stone floor he had clearly broken a few bones. He was begging for her to kill him, but Bella was having too much fun to stop just yet. She pulled out her new knife from the pocket inside her robes and slit the dead woman's throat, her blood spilling down her neck and onto the floor beneath her. The man sobbed harder as he watched Bellatrix mutilate his wife's corpse. When she finally grew tired of listening to the old man's sobs and cutting up the woman's corpse she sent her body falling to the floor. Then she turned her full attention back to the man who was now trying to crawl to his wife's corpse. With a flash of green light, she left him dead, cast the dark mark over the church and went skipping back to her master.

She returned to her master's side proudly, dripping in blood, a deranged look painted across her face.

"Someone enjoyed herself," he hissed softly, "Looks like you got to use your Christmas present too."

She beamed up at him, of course, it has been her master who had given her such a lovely gift. He flicked his wand removing the muggle blood from her before placing his hand on hers and apparating back to Malfoy Manor. Once back in the safety of her family's home, her master let go of her hand and turned leaving her in the hallway without another word. He always left her wanting more, she thought as she headed to her own room to get a quick nap before breakfast.

She squinted as she opened the door to her room, unprepared for the early morning sunlight that streamed through her window. As she walked in she was shocked to see her nephew sitting on the edge of her bed, apparently waiting for her return. Bella eyed him suspiciously.

"Good Morning," she said as she closed the door behind her and unclasping the thick winter robes she had thrown over what she was wearing last night.

"Where did you slip off to last night," he replied in a tone that reminded Bella a little too much of her sister.

"None of your business," Bella laughed as she threw her winter robes back into the wardrobe. Draco had lowered his head, clearly beginning to lose the nerve he had come here with. Bella sighed softly, she could not be too terribly hard on her nephew, "Why?" she asked as she sat down on the bed next to him.

He looked up at her with his big grey eyes that revealed how young he really was, "I came to look for you after you slipped off last night, mother sent me after they went to bed, and I got worried when I could not find you anywhere."

Bella smiled at him, "Clearly I'm just fine," she said reassuringly.

He nodded and returned the smile, "I know. I just, well, I was coming back from the kitchen a few hours ago when I saw you," he was becoming increasingly flustered as he spoke, "and the Dark Lord," then he blushed, "kiss."

Bella's eyes grew wide with panic, "Draco have you said anything to anyone else?" He shook his head alimentally, still slightly too embarrassed to make eye contact. "Draco you must not tell a soul. No one can know, ever," she said as she raised his head so he was looking at her. "Understand? Or he will surely kill us both."

Draco nodded, "I understand," he said softly.

Bella pulled him into a tight hug, "That's my boy," she said proudly, taking a deep breath as she released him.

"So is that who your Christmas present was from?" he asked innocently enough.

She nodded, "Now run along, I'll see you down at breakfast," she said, dismissing him from her room. She needed to clean up and change before making an appearance downstairs. Thankfully she knew Draco could keep a secret when he knew his life was on the line.


	20. Chapter 20

By that morning's post news of Bella's little adventure that night had spread throughout the wizarding community. While muggle authorities remained clueless it was as clear as the dark mark that hung above the blood soaked church that it was one of the dark lord's many followers. Bellatrix remained blissfully unaware of the fact that her most recent crime was already plastered on the front page of the Daily Profit until she skipped into the dining room for breakfast with her family. She was still far too happy to be able to convincingly hide her glee from anyone, as long as she hide the true cause of her happiness all would be alright.

"Good morning!" she spoke as she took her usual seat at the table, a full plate already sitting in front of her. There was not even time to take a bite before her clearly hungover brother in law spoke.

"Good morning Bella," he said casually enough tossing her his copy of the Daily Prophet. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about this, would you?" Lucius spoke as Bella's eyes moved down to the folded paper on the table next to her.

She opened it up casually hiding her sick smile behind the yellow pages. "Looks like someone had a Happy Christmas," she laughed setting the paper back down and turning her attention to her food.

Lucius eyed her suspiciously across the table but was unable to push the subject further as Narcissa had begun talking about Draco and his lack of school for the spring. Bella had not really been tired until she ate, then the reality of only getting a few hours rest had hit her. She managed to scarf down her breakfast and escape the dining room without further interrogation. She quickly climbed the stairs to her room, pulling off her robes and climbing into her empty bed. Only now did her bed truly feel empty. Spending so many years alone, she had forgotten what it was like to have that kind of closeness. She curled up in her covers and drifted off to sleep, knowing that she would see her master in her dreams.

As she slept Bella thought her heard her master's voice, so far away at first. Then it was if he was whispering in her ear, so close yet so far at the same time. Images of crowded shops and busy London streets flashed through her head before she was startled awake. Her window had popped open letting in the icy winter air from outside. She wrapped herself up tight in her covers, reaching for her wand and slamming the window shut with a flick of her wrist. She sat upright in her bed, trying to remember what her master had said, but it grew fainter as the moments passed. She knew that it could not have been a dream. Was her master encouraging her out of the manor? She had been hidden away here since her escape; safe from the icy prison she had been held in for so long. Though as the months had passed this manor had to become like her prison. Her master was fully in control of wizarding Britain. Could it be that she was truly safe now? She felt safe, safer than she had felt since his first rise to power. A wicked smile played across her lips, she was truly free now.

She practically flew out of bed, throwing on her robes and grabbing her winter cloak. She threw open her door, looking up and down the hallway. Draco had to be lurking around her somewhere. Suddenly she wished she had paid more attention the last few weeks he had been home. She snuck off down the hall to Draco's room. It was on the opposite end of the manor from where her sister and brother-in-law's room was. Though it had been an awfully long time since she had any need to look for him there. When she finally made it there she tapped softly on his door.

"Draco," she hissed, hoping that he was in there. Moments felt like an eternity before her striking young nephew creaked the door open. He looked puzzled, Bella, after all, was not the family member to usually come looking for you. She smiled wickedly at him, "Get your cloak, we are going out," her voice commanding and slightly terrifying. After all she was not just his aunt, she was the master's right hand.

He looked at her slightly puzzled for a moment before finally turning to go get his cloak. She followed after him, she did not want to wait long then she needed for their little adventure. As soon as his cloak was in his hand Bella grabbed his arm and disapparated away. The next moment they were standing in an alleyway on a busy London street.

Draco's eyes were wide, "What are we doing here?" he asked looking around as he threw his cloak around himself.

"We, my sweet little nephew are going to have some fun," Bella replied with a sick cackle. "Normally I would have taken Rodolphus and Rabastan with me, but I do not think my husband is too fond of me at the moment." The amusement of her husband's inferiority clear on her pale features.

She swung her cloak around her and pulled the black hood up over her head, quickly hiding her features in shadow. Moving close to the old brick alley wall she worked her way to the sidewalk, looking around briefly before turning back to Draco. She often forgot how young he was, but she had done a good enough job with him that hopefully this would, at least, make for a good training exercise.

"How well can you fly? I know you have been practicing," she asked quickly as her sick plan began to formulate in her head.

"Pretty well, why?" Draco asked looking so small in the cold alley.

"We are going to collapse Tower Bridge! Let's go," she shouted excitedly as she took his arm and flew off in a cloud of black smoke.

Thankfully Draco was doing alright keeping up as Bellatrix flew through the icy London air. Her wand was out as they approached the crowded London Bridge, packed with muggles busy after a long day shopping. She cackled as she shot bright sparks at the bridge's supports. Draco quickly followed her lead as they zoomed around the old stone bridge. Quickly snapping the steel reinforcements and blowing chunks out of the center of the road. It did not take them long to break the bridge sending the muggles into the icy water below. Once they had caused enough chaos to satisfy her she reached for Draco's arm and disapparated back to their family's manor.

Safely back in Draco's room, she unclasped her winter cloak and hung it over her arm. Draco seemed a little stunned, but he handled this impromptu outing rather nicely.

"Our little secret?" she hissed at him not turning and leaving until she was sure he was not going to run off and tell his parents.

Narcissa would lose her mind if she knew that Bella had snuck her precious son out to destroy a muggle bridge on Boxing Day. Draco was thankfully a good nephew and would keep his mouth shut if his dear Auntie Bella asked him too. She would never admit it, but she was pretty proud of him.

Bella skipped downstairs to the library softly humming that stupid muggle rhyme about London Bridge falling down. She was not sure where she knew the song from but it was stuck in her head now. Bella had been very fortunate to have had little contact with muggles, so it was very hard to say where she would have picked up such a tune. She was feeling too triumphant to even care that it was a muggle song. Today she left the manor of her own accord. Today Bella was as free as she had ever been. Wand still in her hand she flung the double doors open as she walked into the dim library. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Nagini curled up in front of the roaring fire. She looked around quickly, her wand still tightly gripped in her hand. Turning around and spotting her master standing in the corner of the room, a book open in his cold eyes looking right through her. Slightly stunned her eyes immediately dropped from his gaze as she bowed.

"My lord, I didn't know you were in here." She spoke quickly hoping that he would not be too cross for her barging in here.

"It's alright my dear Bella. In fact, I was hoping to run into you down here," he hissed softly. Bella's heart skipped a beat, as it always did when her master wanted her.

"What is it master?" she asked curiously, her deep eyes looking into his now.

"Good job today in London," he said ever so casually as Bella momentarily froze. It was always a shock when she knew her master was keeping tabs on her.

"Thank you, my lord," she said bowing her head. When she raised her head back up Voldemort was standing in front of her.

"I have big plans for you, my most loyal lieutenant." She smiled at his words, holding back the urge to wrap her arms around him.

It had only been last night that she fell asleep in his arms, and it was hard to be so close to him and act like it had never happened. She knew better, but it would never stop her from wanting him.


	21. Chapter 21

It was the middle of the night when the burning in her arm woke her. Bella sat straight up in bed looking momentarily at the dark mark on her arm which called her to her master's side. She smiled wickedly as she quickly threw her robes on and disapparated to wherever her master had called her from. Mere moments passed when she found herself in her family's formal dining room, which had been used for meetings since the Dark Lord had regained power. It took only seconds for her eyes to fall upon her master's image, sitting at the head of the table. She tried to hide the smile that was attempting to crawl across her lips as she made her way to her seat to the right of him. It was strange to be alone with him for this long when she had assumed he had called a meeting, even if it was the middle of the night.

"My Lord," she said softly as she bowed her head before taking her seat.

The Dark Lord smiled back at her, his alluring little smirk that drove Bella wild. She could not help but to smile back at him, enjoying another private moment with the man she craved.

"My dear Bella," he hissed softly before a loud pop broke their gaze.

The rest of his inner circle had finally begun to arrive, most still half asleep as they took their places around the long table. There were not very many people which lent itself to the idea that they had a mission coming up. Only the people that needed to be here were invited. Her brother-in-law Lucius sat next to her, where her sister usually sat, which confirmed her suspicions. A few more people took their seats before the Dark Lord spoke.

"Tonight I have received some troubling news. It would appear that Mister Fortescue has been hiding away mudbloods under his shop in Diagon Alley. He also has some very important information that I need." He paused only briefly as he looked over his followers, "I want the mudbloods killed, his shop destroyed and Mister Fortescue brought back her for interrogation." The excitement on Bella's bloodthirsty face was undeniable, and she knew her master could see it too. "Bellatrix will lead a group of you to Mister Fortescue's shop while the rest of you will disperse through Diagon Alley to make sure no one interferes with this task." His words were final as he left the room in a puff of black smoke, leaving his followers to carry out his will.

Bella stood up first, looking over everyone. Only now did she notice that her "husband" Rodolphus and his brother Rabastan had not been called here tonight. As much as she could not stand him, she would have liked him there.

"Okay, Lucius, Dolohov, and Rowle; you are with me," she hissed as she disapparated in a cloud of black, her manic laughter filling the room as she departed.

She was quickly joined in the dark streets of Diagon Alley by her hand-selected team. There was no denying how important she felt carrying out her master's orders. With a quick glance at the death eaters around her, she flicked her wand and blew the door to his shop off the hinges. Her laughter was all you could hear as the door crashed into the ice cream shop.

"Come out, come out wherever you are!" she cackled as she stepped over the broken door, followed closely by fellow death eaters. "Florean! I just want to talk to you!" she hissed as she shattered the glass ice cream display.

While she would much rather torture and kill the filthy mudbloods in his basement she knew that her master would want her to be the one to bring Florean to him. She crept through the shop and up the stairs to where he lived while Lucius, Dolohov, and Rowle headed downstairs to take care of the filth. With another flick of her wand, she blew the door to his house off into the living room.

"We can do this the easy way, or the hard way," she shouted as she stepped over the threshold, over the door, and into his partially destroyed living room. As she turned to look through the rest of the house she was shocked to see a pair of Order of the Phoenix members standing in his dining room. Without missing a beat, she sent a stream of hot green light into the closest person, a young which that she was not familiar with.

"Looks like it's going to be the hard way," she laughed as the girl's lifeless body hit the floor. The tall, lanky wizard shot a stunning spell as Bella which she blocked and deflected with an easy flick of her wrist. "You are really going to have to try hard," she mocked as she sent her favorite spell into the man's chest.

Red light poured from her wand as the man writhed and cried in pain, Bella's laughter growing with every scream. As her latest victim's screams slowly began to die down she heard hurried footsteps on the stairs leading to where she was. She turned, wand ready for the oncoming battle as several more witches and wizards filed into the house. As eye contact was made and she began blocking spells she felt something cool wrap around her and disapparate. Anger filled her body, who would dare pull her away from her master's task? When she found herself back in Malfoy Manor she was ready to kill whoever was still holding on to her. She spun around, wand grasped tightly in her hand when her fury filled eyes landed on the image of the Dark Lord himself. Confusion replaced her anger as she searched his ever guarded face.

"My Lord?" was all she was able to speak.

Why would he take her away? Did he not feel her capable of taking on the stupid members of the Order? He still had not let go of her but then as if almost a sudden realization of what had just happened he released her and stepped back. His face was as unreadable as ever, and his silence only added to her confusion and allowed her anger to begin to creep back in.

"Why?" she asked softly, her eyes pleading with his. She never questioned her master, but this she just did not understand. Her master remained quiet, turning and walking away from her. Bella's anger boiled within her, "Why!?" she shouted furiously.

She immediately knew she should not have spoken to her master in such a tone, but for once she really did not regret it. She watched the anger flush through his whole being, as he rushed at her his wand out.

The next thing she knew she was thrown against the wall, her master now only millimeters away from her face, a cold hand wrapped around her neck. The fact that she was not already dead was a good sign, but it did not mean that he would not take her life tonight. Her eyes were unrelenting, glaring back at his cold, angry stare.

"How dare you question me!" he shouted at her. "You have always been my most loyal servant, I never expected such an outburst from you," he hissed, his face almost touching hers now. For a moment she thought she saw a flash of something softer behind his eyes, so she took her opportunity to speak.

"I'm sorry my lord." Her words were soft, like her eyes, as she tried to not be angry with her master; which she was finding increasingly difficult with his lips so close to hers.

She had to just have faith that there was a reason for his strange actions, she also needed to resist the urge to kiss him as he held her between himself and the wall. He finally released his grip from her neck, but he did not move right away. He looked at her for a moment longer before he took her hand and led her away from the wall. Only then did she realize that she was once again in her master's room, a warm fire crackling in the fireplace. As he led her to sit by the fire he finally spoke again.

"You are my most loyal and your safety is important," he hissed softly. No one had so blatantly cared about her well-being, besides her sister, but this felt different.

"Thank you, my lord," she said wondering how far she would be able to push her luck tonight.

They sat in silence for a moment before Bella curled up next to her master, one arm resting casually behind him. She really did not care at this point in time, she loved him and while they were alone until he told her otherwise, she was going to do as she pleased. She was slightly surprised to feel his arm reach around her, holding her close to him.


	22. Chapter 22

Tonight was going to be another one of the Malfoy's outrageous parties. It was New Year's Eve and Narcissa had been decorating the house and getting things ready since the crack of dawn. So much had happened the last few days that Bella was ready for some peace and quiet, but she would do this for her sister. Tomorrow would be her quiet day. Her master had done a lot of work to cover up her being swept off in the middle of a fight, but she had a sinking feeling that her brother in law had an idea about what had really happened. She could not understand why the Dark Lord was being so unpredictable and so cautious. He was pulling the strings behind Britain's Ministry of Magic, they were more successful than they had ever been and there was no one that could stop them. That night just stirred up more questions that Bella did not need on her mind, especially while trying to focus on finding something to wear to this silly thing. Her sister had somehow convinced Rodolphus to send over Bellatrix's wardrobe from their old house, but there was no way that she was going to be able to wear half of that stuff ever again. It was nice to have a full closet again, but most of it was old memories that she did not want any longer. She had pulled a few dresses that might be candidates for that evening out when she stumbled upon her wedding dress. She pulled it out and looked it over before incinerating it and tossing it in the fireplace. No wonder Rodolphus had agreed to have her stuff sent over, that sick little prick. After trying on the few dresses that she had deemed acceptable, she finally settled on a sleek black and white striped gown that still hugged her in all the right places. Now if only the rest of the day would fly by so she could get ready with her sister and get this party out of the way.

It was not long before Narcissa came looking for Bella to help with the finishing touches. Bella sat using her wand to string decorations throughout the house while she listened to her sister go on about how great tonight was going to be and how Draco had invited a girl and that was probably the reason that he had decided to return to Hogwarts after the holidays. She listened and helped until Narcissa sent her upstairs to grab her stuff so they could get ready together. When Bella returned to her room she found a large black box laying in the middle of her bed, wrapped with a large silver bow. She eyed it suspiciously before flicking her wand and unwrapping the bow and removing the lid. Inside was a stunning emerald and black lace gown, she was stunned. It was much nicer than the old one she was going to wear. She pulled it out and held it up to herself in the mirror, admiring how perfect it was. It was not until she went to place it back in the box that she noticed a smaller box lying next to it. She placed the dress down and carefully opened the little black velvet box only to find the most stunning emerald ring she had ever seen. Bella was now completely speechless as she admired the large stone. She quickly grabbed her new dress and ring as well as the necklace her master had gotten her for Halloween and hurried off to her sister's room. Last time there was a party the Dark Lord surprised her with a necklace, could all of this be from his as well? At this point, there was no telling and there was no time to dwell on it either, as per usual her sister was going to spend half the afternoon trying to turn Bella's hair into something manageable.

The sister's talked casually while Narcissa did Bella's unruly hair, and then her own. It was not until it was time for them to get changed that her sister noticed the new dress her sister was proudly wearing.

"Where did this come from? It's gorgeous Bella!" Narcissa exclaimed while Bella added the finishing touches to her look for the evening.

"I don't know," Bella replied nonchalantly, "It was sitting on my bed when I got back upstairs." she added as she turned in her sister's giant mirror.

The dress looked even better on her, the high neckline gave it a very sophisticated look, but the high-low cut on the skirt added a little fun to it. Then there was the giant rock that was placed carefully on her left hand where it could be shown off. Maybe tonight was going to be better than she thought. Narcissa was eyeing Bellatrix very suspiciously but dropped the subject. Her sister seemed genuinely happy and she was not going to put a damper on things. Narcissa was dressed to the nines as always, wearing a long black gown with diamonds from head to toe.

"Cissy you look beautiful!" Bella exclaimed as they locked their arms to walk downstairs.

Thankfully this party was not as formal as the last one and she would not need to be escorted in by Rodolphus, in fact, she was not even sure if he was going to be there and she could not have cared less. By the time they arrived downstairs the party was already in full swing, the music was playing everyone was dancing and drinking and having a good time. Lucius quickly snatched Narcissa off to the dance floor. They really were perfect together, Bella thought as she grabbed a glass of champagne from the bar and watched her sister and brother-in-law glide around the dance floor. Even Draco was dancing, albeit a little awkwardly, with a pretty little girl Bella assumed must be from Hogwarts. The cherry on top was that her "husband" was nowhere in sight. For this moment, all seemed right in the world. It was a strangely comforting feeling that Bella was certainly not used to. Bella swayed to the music while she drank her glass of champagne, wandering contently around the room watching the party around her. It was nice being in her own little world just enjoying the atmosphere and the drink in her hand.

There was no telling how much time had passed when she felt her forearm begin to burn, calling her back from her head and to her master. Her heart raced as she tried to casually make her way through the party and to somewhere she could safely disapparate without drawing attention to herself. She carefully opened the large double doors and stopped dead in her tracks. Her master was waiting for her just outside the doors. She could not keep the smile off her face as she let the doors shut behind her.

"My lord," she said softly bowing her head before looking him up and down. He was all dressed up in some of the finest dress robes she had ever seen. If she thought he was handsome before, now there were not even words.

"Having a good evening?" he asked casually enough.

"Very good, my lord," she said contently. "Though it would be nice to have someone to dance with," she added with a soft sigh. Bella watched her master closely as she spoke, her deep eyes never leaving his.

The dark lord reached for her hand, kissing it softly before leading her back into the crowded room. Shock was the only feeling that could adequately describe how she felt as the Dark Lord himself led her into the crowded room. Her master never made public social appearances, and it was clear by the stunned looks on everyone's faces as they walked into the room and over to the dance floor. The stunned looks only fed Bella's ego as she danced in the center of the floor with the only man she ever wanted to dance with. Her smile was unyielding as they glided across the floor, her eyes glued on his. She felt like a princess in a fairytale, what an idea that was. They danced for what felt like hours before he finally led her off the dance floor, out the double doors and outside onto balcony overlooking the garden. Not a single word had been shared between, but honestly, there did not need to be. A slight shiver rushed through Bella's thin frame as the icy winter air rushed through her. Voldemort led her over to the railing, overlooking the grounds of the manor, a bucket of ice and champagne resting next to them. Her master unclipped his cloak and draped it over her bare shoulders as they stood, listening to the party raging inside the stone walls. She watched as he popped the cork in the champagne and poured each of them a glass, handing Bella's to her as the countdown to the new year echoed from inside. Bella looked up into her master's eyes as the party inside erupted in shouts of 'Happy New Year'.

She smiled, "Happy New Year, my lord," she said softly taking a sip from her glass.

"Happy New Year, Bella," her master hissed as he drank his glass of champagne, her hand still resting in his.

After finishing his glass, he placed it down on the railing, moving his hand to brush against Bella's face before pulling her close and kissing her. Butterflies erupted and soared through her body as her lips met his and she kissed, really kissed, the only person she had ever wanted to. If this was any indication of how the next year was going to go she was more than excited.


	23. Chapter 23

The rest of the night was a blur to say the least. Bella was caught up in a whirlwind of emotions, unable to completely process what was happening. She was happy, no ecstatic, for the first time since her youth. It was more than that though and she knew that there would never be enough words to express half of what she was feeling in that moment. To think that not even a year ago, she was locked away, clinging to the hope that her master would return; while the dementors did their best to take every ounce of life from her body. Her wildest dreams could not compare to her life now. She was free, really free. More importantly then that she had just about everything she had ever wanted. She was finally more than just her master's right hand. No matter what that more might be, she was definitely more.

She awoke the next day wrapped in dark emerald sheets, in a bed she was sure was not her own. There was a fire crackling in the fireplace keeping the winter chill at bay. A content smile played delicately across her lips as she looked around for the Dark Lord. She knew he was not there, but she had to look to be certain. There was no telling where he might have been lurking. She sat up slowly taking the glass of pumpkin juice that was left on the nightstand for her, pulling her winter robes around her tightly. She was not sure how long she had been sleeping, but the sun was shining brightly outside, gleaming on the freshly fallen snow outside the window. It had to be at least after breakfast and that made her nervous. There would be questions, questions Bella could not answer. Until her master made something public it would just have to be a secret. No matter what. Finally, she crawled out of bed and made her way back to her own room. Today was feeling like a hot bubble bath and a good book kind of a day. She could hide away for a little while, safe from any nagging questions.

Bella reached for her wand when she noticed that her bedroom door was already ajar. She crept quietly ready for whoever was lurking inside. When she turned into her doorway she was relieved to see that it was only her nephew, sitting patiently on the end of her bed for her. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Funny running into you here," she said playfully taking a seat next to Draco. He smiled back at her.

"Oh just wondering where my aunt slipped off to after dancing the night away with the Dark Lord himself," he said with that I know what you are up to look.

"None of your business where I went last night," she said keeping her playful tone.

"Well, your husband interrupted my date to ask me if I had seen where you had snuck off to. You remember your husband, Rodolphus," he said sarcastically, "Anyway I told him to bugger off, which he did, but he came back with this letter for you and made me promise to give it to you," he finished pulling the letter out of his robes. Bella took it, her feelings about her nephew's story clearly written across her face as evident by Draco's reply, "Hey, at least, you are not stuck with him at school all term pestering you about your aunt who clearly wants nothing to do with him." He smiled, which made Bella smile again.

She wrapped her arms around him, "Thank you," she said kindly. "So it was a date then?" she asked playfully.

Which was met by Draco's rolling eyes and an equally playful, "Bugger off," as he stood and left the room.

She sat there for a moment before getting up, she slipped Rodolphus's letter into the latest book she was reading, grabbed her bathrobe and headed out to continue her relaxing day.

Her first stop was to the kitchen for a bottle of wine and a glass. After that, she made her way to the large guest bathroom. With a wave of her wand, the taps on the large bathtub began to fill the tub up with warm water and an assortment of multi-hued bubbles, the hundreds of candles placed around the room lite and flickered softly and her long curly hair was done up on her head. She smiled softly as she got in she placed her book on the edge of the tub, pouring herself a glass of wine before placing the bottle down too. She closed her eyes, taking a sip from her glass as she sank into the warm frothy tub. It was not long before she was half way deep into her bottle of wine and finishing up the last pages of her book. Rodolphus's note tucked into the back for when she felt like dealing with his nonsense. A few more glasses and she might just be there she thought as she put her book down and sinking lower into the tub closing her eyes, her head resting on the ledge surrounding the tub contently buzzed. It was not long before she felt something change in the air and before she could even open her eyes she felt a cold hand rest on her shoulder. Her eyes opened wildly, one arm reaching for her wand when she saw none other than the Dark Lord sitting on the edge of the tub.

"Master," she said breathing easier now that it was only him.

"Having a good afternoon?" he hissed softly taking the wine glass from her hand and placing it next to the bottle. "I brought you a little surprise, but I need you to be at your best before I can let you have it."

She nodded quietly looking up at him with her big dark eyes. He leaned over and kissed her gently on the forehead before disapparating. She smiled as she grabbed her wand and stepped out of the tub and into her fluffy bathrobe. If she would not have been so excited about her master's surprise she might have been sad about leaving almost half a bottle of wine. She managed her way back to her room to change before making her way downstairs to eat something. She had to try to get rid of this buzz and fast.

Finally, sober Bella sat in a large green chair that had been moved to look out one of the windows overlooking the grounds of the manor. A blanket of fresh snow covered the landscape of her brother-in-law's home. The familiar paths outside hidden away until next spring. She had traded her wine for pumpkin juice as she waited for her master to decide that she had been given enough time to sober up for whatever he had in store for her. There had not been another mission since Diagon Alley, which almost did not count. The minutes turned to hours before she felt what could only be her master's hands resting on her shoulders. She grinned, a grin that only he could coax out of her.

"Master," she cooed, her eyes looking up into his cold expression.

"My dearest Bella, shall we?" he asked, moving his hands off of her shoulders and holding one out for her to take.

She placed her hand gently in his as she stood up and followed him through the manor and down into the cellar. In the dark, damp room sat a young girl in her early twenties with bubble gum pink hair and a strange familiarity that Bella could not place. She grinned wickedly looking up at her master eager for the chance to torture and kill for him. He grinned back at her.

"Bella, I would like to introduce you to your niece, Nymphadora Tonks. Other than being the half-blood child of your sister she was also an Auror who now is working for the Order. She was captured early this morning trying to smuggle mudbloods out of the country," he laughed.

Bella cackled along with the Dark Lord. While it was certainly a shock to finally meet her niece face to face she was more than ready to punish her for her crimes. Her master gestured to the girl, his eyes never leaving Bella who without hesitation flicked her wand cackling as the red light hit her "niece" her screams filling the cellar. The Dark Lord stood back watching Bella as she cast curse after curse as the defenseless girl. Bella's bloodthirsty laughter and the girl's agonizing screams filling the cellar until the girl could no longer scream.

"Pity," Bella cooed softly at the girl, "Your mother had so much potential. But she threw it all away on that filthy muggle father of yours."

The girl was just about as lifeless as one can be while still having a pulse, tortured past the breaking point. Bella stepped back, disgust painted across her face.

"Avada Kedavra," she shouted striking the girl and ending her life.

Her master always had the best surprises for her. He placed his hand on her shoulder, smiling down on her before disapparating with her, leaving the girl for someone else to dispose of.


	24. Chapter 24

Somehow she was surprised when the Dark Lord apparated them into his room. She was still high off her kill and she knew that her master could feel it. He was so close, his hand moved from her shoulder to her waist turning her around to face him. Bella stared up into his icy eyes, but there was something new behind them. A fire that both excited and terrified her at the same time. He moved his other hand up to rest against the side of her pale face, drawing her into his lips. She met his kiss with a fiery passion, one that could only be compared to her bloodlust. He was everything she had ever wanted but the terror that these moments were too good to be true lingered in the back of her mind. He pulled away, looking down into her dark eyes.

"My Bella," he hissed softly scooping her up in his arms and carrying her over to the fireplace.

Nagini was curled up near the roaring blaze, an emerald love seat was placed directly in front. He sat down with her still in his arms, his embrace unyielding. To say the Bella could hardly breath would be a vast understatement.

"M-my lord," she managed to whisper as she looked into his cold distant eyes, trying to figure out what in the world was happening.

What could he possibly be thinking behind those eyes of his? She longed for something, anything, but she knew well and good that she would never see more than she was allowed. Why she continued to try, after all, this time, was beyond her, but something always made her search, hopeful one day he would let her in. Such a funny thing hope was.

"You did well tonight," her master hissed coolly, "not that I expected anything less from my best lieutenant."

She smiled broadly, "Thank you, my lord," she spoke trying not to sound too overly pleased with herself. She enjoyed torturing and killing more than anything else, especially when it was for the pleasure of her lord.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" her master asked, which threw Bella for a bit of a spin. She thought it was rather obvious, but maybe he was just being courteous.

"Of course, my lord," she said faster than she would have cared to. "Maybe more than I should have," these words came before she could stop them, the truth behind them stung her lips and she almost immediately regretted letting them slip past.

She never tried to say more than she should around her master. Everyone knew she was mad anyway. To her surprise, her face was guided up to meet her master's, his cool hand resting softly on her face. She clearly looked surprised, and when her eyes met the dark lord's she found a small bemused smile waiting for her.

"But Bella that might be one of your most endearing qualities. You do most things more than you should. Your bloodlust alone is inspiring," her master's words were cool and smooth and seemed almost out of place, such flattery.

"Thank you, my lord," her eyes broke his gaze, trying to hide the flush that rushed to her cheeks.

Only her master could make her blush like a sappy little school girl. Even when she was in school she was not the sappy sort. He was her only weakness. She could watch the whole world burn as long as he was not burning with it. Hell, she would burn it all down if he asked her to, and she would enjoy every moment of it. She cherished every moment she was allowed to spend with him, and in service to him. Even her years in Azkaban were almost bearable, they were worth it for him. It was all worth it, even just for these small moments.

Voldemort ran his fingers through the long messy curls that fell from Bella's head, wildly out of place adding to her maddening presence.

"Your mind is always so open to me," he hissed softly before leaning in to whisper in her ear, "I have seen your heart, and it is mine."

Her eyes flashed wildly when his words met her ears, but she knew he knew. Maybe he always knew and even if he did not, there was no running from it.

"It always has been, my lord," she finally said looking up to him. She was shocked to see a smirk upon her master's face, the bewilderment must have been clearly painted across her own.

"And I have always known," he hissed almost pleasantly kissing her softly on the forehead. "I always told you that your loyalty would be rewarded, and as my best lieutenant and most loyal servant, your rewards should be as important to you as your service is to me." He eyes we wide as she listened to her master speak, beyond speechless. "Though I do have one possibly selfish request," he hissed.

"Anything for you, my lord," Bella exclaimed, her enthusiasm evident. Her master smiled a wicked smile waving his wand and summoning a simple silver band with an emerald snake inlaid in the metal.

"As you are well aware over the years I have created several Horcruxes, in case anything should ever happen to me. One of these precious objects even resides in your vault and Gringotts." Her master paused for just a moment, "Your unyielding loyalty is so rare to find that I simply could not afford to lose you. Which makes you performing your duties as my right hand exceedingly dangerous, as you are well aware. So tonight, my dearest Bella I ask for you to willing give me a piece of your soul so that I may keep at least a part of you safe. You are the only person who could ever be worthy enough to be my right hand." Bella's eyes were transfixed on her master, in stunning disbelief.

"It would be my greatest honor, my lord."

Her words clearly please her master as he moved his wand to her placing the tip on her chest. She was well read on Horcruxes and knew that her soul had already been split into many pieces, another bit fracturing tonight when she took the life of her filthy half-blood niece. She watched intently as her master drew a small piece of crumbling soul out and hid it deep within the ring that he had summoned only moments before. He had clearly done this many times as he did it silently and with swift precision. It was mere moments before he finished creating her very own Horcrux and slid it onto the ring finger of his right hand. Forever his right hand.

The rest of their night flew by, eating chocolate and drinking a bottle of Bella's favorite wine. Indulging in this quiet night in a world that was slowly becoming less chaotic. Things felt safe and that felt dangerous but for now, she would allow herself to believe that things for them might really be safe. After all the dark lord was everywhere, his pawns all falling into their rightful places as the New Year slowly began to tick away. She was, at least, safe here, tucked away in her brother-in-law's manor in the arms of the dark lord himself. Which is where she found herself when she woke up the next morning, still in his arms wrapped up in the emerald sheets that were becoming more and more familiar. Could her master really be asleep still? Would he really allow her to see him in such a mortal state? She rolled over only to find him watching her with those icy eyes.

"Good morning," he hissed casually enough.

"Good morning my lord," she replied softly.

His right arm was draped around her waist, her Horcrux gleaming in the morning sunlight. She reached out carefully running one of her fingers over the emerald snake feeling her own energy meet her finger tip. It was a strange feeling to be able to reach out and touch a part of your soul, even when a soul was as mangled and torn as her own was. She thought that she might feel different having a piece of her soul missing, but maybe she was too far gone, too mad, too mangled for such a thing. She was cold and slightly detached and that was why she was her master's right hand.

"You should go down to breakfast before someone wanders where you have slithered off to," the dark lord said as he watched her.

She looked up, "Do I have to?" she asked playfully, knowing good and well what her master's answer would be. His icy eyes told her all she needed to know but she lingered for just a moment longer.

He kissed her hand softly, "Get up, get dressed, eat breakfast," hissed the dark lord, "Appearances my dear Bella. I know I do not need to remind you."

She nodded, "Yes my lord," she said as she got out of bed, wrapping her robes around her and striding out of her master's room without a second glance. Maybe it was easier know that he now kept a piece of her with him.


	25. Chapter 25

Time felt so slow today, Bella had already finished the last book she was reading and it was not even lunch time. It left her in quite the predicament as she was not staring at the sealed envelope Rodolphus had left for her. She could not ignore him forever, as much as she would like to try. He was going to need to be dealt with sooner or later, and all signs were pointing at sooner. She took a deep breath trying to prepare herself for whatever nonsense her 'husband' might have written. She carefully tore open the envelope, breaking through the Lestrange family crest that had been holding the parchment closed.

Bella-

Rabastan is set to marry the youngest Carrow sister this spring. I have only met her a few times and while she is certainly not his type everyone is hopeful they will be able to produce a few Lestrange heirs. Our time for such things passed long ago, as hard as we tried it was not meant to be, and you know that. It seems a lot of things were not meant to be. I miss you terribly, I missed you every day we were locked away and every day after. I know that I never meant as much to you as you did to me. Being locked away for thirteen years certainly did not help matters. I do not blame you for anything. I will always love you Bella, but I know that whatever we had ended long ago. I will not bother you about such trivial matters but know I will always be here for you when you need me. Most of all I will always love you.

-Rodolphus

So there it was, the end of her marriage. Not so final, not divorce, but it was certainly out in the open. She was done with him and he was going to leave her be, she could not ask much more of him. She would keep his last name, for now, she was proud that she, at least, entered into a pureblood marriage like she was supposed to. She was too famous to drop his family name anyway. Bellatrix Lestrange was known to all in the British wizarding world, it struck fear in all those who heard it. She would not give that up. She folded the letter back up, placing it in her book before heading up to her room. The least she could do was write him back. It was a simple note, she still had very little to say to him.

Rodolphus-

Thank you. Perhaps I will see you at Rabastan's wedding.

-Bella

She sealed the letter and rushed to find one of the Malfoy's owls. Two spiral staircases later she was standing in the breezy room, several large horned owls were quietly roosting on the perches inside. She rushed to the nearest one, the cold was already sending shivers through her, and quickly tied the parchment to his leg.

"Rodolphus Lestrange," she spoke hastily as the large owl stretched his wings before taking flight.

She drew her cloak tightly around her before fleeing the cold for the warmth of a fire crackling downstairs. She headed down to the library, in need of a new book to read. She really needed to talk to her sister about making a trip out to purchase some new books to add to their collection. She felt as though she had read through the Malfoy library a hundred times. Clearly an exaggeration, but tiresome none the less. The library was so warm, the fireplace blazing, the warm smell of books lingering in the air. This was one of her favorite rooms. She began looking lazily over the titles of books she had certainly read before trying to find something that would, at least, peak her interest. She sighed rolling her eyes, her finger running lazily over the spines before her eyes caught a shimmer of silver on the loveseat. She spun around sharply, her wand held tightly in her hand when her eyes fell on an emerald green package wrapped in a silver ribbon. She approached it slowly, looking at the small tag attached with her name written on it. She grinned as she unwrapped the pretty package pleased to find three books, three books that she had not read. Her grin was unfading as she poured over the titles trying to decide which to read first. Interesting titles, all on the dark arts. She picked a small black book filled with some interesting curses and hexes. Most she knew but there was more than a few that were new to her and she decided to spend the rest of the morning studying them, intent on practicing after lunch. Though it might be harder to find something to practice on than she would care to admit.

Lunch came quick and she anxiously sat at the table with her family trying to figure out where she would find some prey for her afternoon's practice.

"Anyone left down in the cellar?" she asked Lucius anxiously.

He eyed her suspiciously, "Why?"

"None of your business Lucius," Bella cooed.

"You killed the last one last night," Lucius stated matter-of-factly. "If you are really that bored Bella you should just go down to the ministry. They have cages full of mudbloods just waiting for someone to put them in their rightful place."

Bella grinned at the thought, her bloodlust bubbling deep within, "So clever Lucius."

"So you are just going to walk into the ministry and tell them you are there to play twisted games with the mudbloods?" Lucius was as cocky ever, he really thought he knew everything.

Bella smiled darkly, "I could," she laughed as she stood up from the table and skipped off.

She sat on the end of her bed with her sleeve pulled up revealing her midnight black brand, as black as the day her master gave it to her. She was not one to bother her master, but she was desperate to leave the manor and enjoy her favorite hobby. She held her hand over the mark her arm burned and she knew that her master had been summoned. She took a deep breath as she felt the air in the room change her master's figure appearing before her.

"I have felt your bloodlust growing my dear Bella," her master hissed.

"It has my lord. The books you gave me have inspired me," she said looking up into his eyes.

He smiled down at her, "I knew it would. Which is good since there is are mudbloods at the ministry waiting to go to Azkaban. Mudbloods do not deserve the privilege of being placed in a wizard prison."

Bella grinned broadly up at her lord, "I could not agree more my lord."

His hand brushed against her cheek, "Then you should head to the ministry when you are ready. I will let them know that my right hand will be there to help take care of the sentenced mudbloods."

"Thank you, master," she spoke proudly, the excitement evident.

"Have fun," the dark lord hissed before disapparating. She let a dark cackle escape her lips as she got ready, she needed to give the dark lord enough time to let them know that she would be arriving.

She picked up her book and browsed over the various hexes and curses that she would be experimenting with, the bloodlust and excitement filling her up with every passing moment until she could not wait any longer. She rushed down to the fireplace in the sitting room, quickly grabbing a handful of flu powder and throwing it into the flames. Her eyes danced as the flames turned a brilliant green and she stepped into them clearly commanding them to take her to the ministry. She could honestly say had never willing visited the ministry before today. This was going to be fun.


	26. Chapter 26

"Madame Lestrange," a skinny little wizard exclaimed as he tried to keep up with Bella as she marched through the atrium of the ministry. "We've been expecting you, it is such an honor to have you here with us," the skinny wizard continued forcing Bella to hide a smile.

She could feel everyone's eyes on her and she had to fight the urge to begin cackling madly. She loved this, the power was more than addicting and she could feel it welling up inside of her as she continued to the elevator that would take her to where they were keeping all of her mudblood toys. It was not long before they arrived on the tenth floor, the new home for The Muggle-Born Registration Commission. A stumpy toad of a witch dressed all in pink was waiting for her.

"Madame Lestrange," her appallingly high pitched voice rang.

It might have been one of the most horrid noises Bella had ever heard, and that was a very frightening thought. She managed to hide the absolute disgust that coursed through her veins and simply cocked an eyebrow, looking down coldly. Clearly she was not what the stumpy witch had been expecting and she saw a flash of fear behind her eyes.

"If you would follow me I can take you to where we have been keeping the muggle-borns who have already been sentenced," she said in that same terrible voice as she turned on her stumpy little feet and started off to wherever Bella was meant to be going.

The looks only were well worth the trip here and she knew it was only going to get better when she was given her new play toys. She might have to have a word with her master about this terrible little witch who was kind of freaking her out. Everything about her seemed unnatural to her and she had seen her fair share of unnatural things. Thankfully it was not long before they reached the mudblood holding cells. Perfect little cages all in a row a filthy mudblood in each one, just waiting for her. A twisted smile slowly crept onto her lips as the pink toad went over which ones had already been sentenced. Bella stood there unmoving until the creepy little witch turned and left, this moment was for her and her alone.

When she knew that she had been left here alone she cackled madly, "Filthy little mudbloods!"

She quickly flourished her wand swinging open the first cell. With another quick wave ropes exploded out of the tip of her wand binding around the person inside and dragging his thrashing body until he was on the floor in front of her. She had new things to practice but those would have to wait. Her first killing here would be an example for all of them. With another dark cackle, she sent her favorite curse into the man, the red light hitting him square in the chest as he cried out writhing on the ground. Before he had time to recover from the last curse she struck him again and again until he was only whimpering softly on the ground. Her wicked smile grew as she leaped on top of him, pinning his arm out and grabbing the knife her master had given her for Christmas. She had not had much of a chance to use it lately, but she would certainly put it to good use today. She took her time carefully using the blade to carve the word mudblood into him arm. Nice and deep just in case someone forgot what he was. When he was dead his skin would eventually rot away and she did not want anyone who found him bones to be unaware of the filth they had found. She took her wand and carefully traced over the carving allowing it to be etched all the way down to the bone. An eternal reminder. She cackled, admiring her work before turning to look at the limp mudblood now at her feet.

She sighed, "Week little thing," before turning her wand on him and ending his life quickly. The green light from the curse illuminating her face as it struck him.

She quickly turned her attention to the next cell, enjoying the looks that the mudbloods were giving her. Fear would have been an immense understatement. There was one young little witch crying in the back of her cell that caught Bella's attention. She loved it when her victims cried, this one was going to be fun. The cell door flung open, banging against the iron bars as Bella used her wand to drag the girl from the cell to her feet.

"Poor little mudblood," Bella cooed, "Are you scared?" she asked in a childish voice. The little girl nodded, tears still running down her cheeks. "You should be!" Bella shouted as she decided to try one of her newest curses.

A sharp purple light flew from her wand and struck the girl square in the chest. The little witch's eyes grew wide as she began gasping for air, her lips turning a soft blue color. Bella watched intently as her victim slowly began to suffocate at her feet. She took her wand and placed it to the girls forearm as the word mudblood slowly carved its way across her skin. Then without a second glance, she cast the killing curse. This went on well into the evening. She went through the dozen mudbloods that had already been sentenced, practicing new curses and hexes, carving the word mudblood into each arm and leaving their corpses on the floor. When she was done and completely satisfied with the job she had done she strode proudly down the corridor leading her back to the elevator. As she walked people scurried away, clearly some had been brave enough to listen. She also must have looked rather frightening, blood stains on her hands and cloak, madness clearly painted across her features. You could have heard a pin drop as she strode proudly on her way to the elevator and back down to the atrium. The busy bustling of the atrium fell silent as she made her way back to the fireplaces, picking one she stepped in and was consumed by the green fire, sending her back to the manor.

Now it was time to clean up and enjoy the aftermath of her day. She went up to her room, grabbing fresh robes and headed to the bathroom. Once again it was time for a nice hot bath and a bottle of wine. Today was certainly one for the books. The bathtubs were large enough to host a party in, the excessive size adding to the grandeur that was the manor. With a flick of her wand, the tub filled up with steaming water and soft scented bubbles. She conjured a bottle of wine and a glass, pouring herself a drink before slipping into the warm water. Today Bella felt like a queen, and in her own way maybe she was. She sat enjoying the silence until she felt the air in the room change. While she was cautious it felt familiar and soon she felt her master's hand run across her shoulders.

"Someone has had a good day," he hissed softly.

"A wonderful day, my lord," she said happily leaning her head back to look at him.

"Did you know that I can feel your bloodlust now? All of the power and madness coursing through you I can feel," he hissed.

How could she forget, her Horcrux would allow him a connection to her; she had no idea it would be this strong. "Do you like it?" she asked hopefully.

He smiled wickedly at her, "I more than like it," he hissed before leaning in to kiss her.

Clearly he liked it. She kissed him back passionately enjoying every moment he allowed her. Who was she kidding, she was a queen and the dark lord was her king.


	27. Chapter 27

The dark lord knew that he could not love anyone, it was something that became clear to him while he was at Hogwarts. Somewhere deep down he had always known, but during his fifth year, he became certain of it. He did not try to fight it but learned to use people's desire for love to his advantage. It was just another thing that made him superior to everyone else. Now this was not to say that he did not have feelings, but he did not have those kind of feelings. Which made the decision he had made much more complicated. When Bella was freed from Azkaban he promised her that she would be rewarded. In the months following her release she proved time and time again how extremely valuable she was. She was his most loyal lieutenant, his right hand and possibly the most powerful witch in all of Wizarding Britain. Bellatrix was the only person who he had ever known whose powers truly rivaled his own and her loyalty was one of a kind. He knew that he would never have another person who could live up to everything Bella was. Simply put, she was an asset he could not afford to lose. Coming up with a way to reward that seemed impossible, but it was really so disturbingly simple it infuriated him that it took so long to figure out. The only thing she had ever wanted had been staring him in the face from the moment he recruited her. The only problem was that he could not truly reward her like she deserved. He would never be able to love her, and certainly not the way she loved him. Bella's love was unconditional, there was nothing he could do that would change her love for him. She loved him more than she loved herself and even more than he loved himself, which was really a statement.

He might not be able to love things per say, but he loved power; he loved her power. Watching Bella become one of the most powerful witches in the country was something he had enjoyed over their years together. She was his creation, molded by his teachings into a very powerful witch. To say he was proud would be an immense understatement. Bella was brilliant, certainly the brightest of his death eaters, mastering anything he could throw at her. Then there was the bloodlust and madness she was born with. These were things she had hidden fairly well before joining the ranks as a death eater. She mastered the cruciatus curse quickly, enjoying the torture of her victims. All of the unforgivable curses came easily to her, but the joy she got from torturing people was unique. Then she had her first kill, a member of the order, which she celebrate late into the night. None of his other followers celebrated kills like Bella did. That was in the beginning, though, she was different now. Azkaban had brought the madness within up to the surface for everyone to see. Sure she was crazy to begin with but now she had reached a whole new level of lunacy. You could see it on stranger's faces, she truly frightened people. Even when she would train with other death eaters, they were all just waiting for her to snap. She was a ticking time bomb ready to explode in a moment's notice. In reality, she had always been this way, but it was certainly more evident now. She commanded a room's attention and demanded fear and respect. Sometimes she was almost too like him. She was not afraid to be herself, no matter what that was. Always the first to volunteer for any task, eager for anything he asked her to do. How could he not love that about her?

If he could love, it would be her. In his own way maybe he did love her. It was nothing compared to the way she loved him, but maybe it would be good enough. He would always take care of her and when he discovered the secret to immortality he would share it with her and her alone. By creating a Horcrux for her, he had already taken the first step in making sure he could bring her back if anything happened to her. In fact, he was considering making another one, just in case. All though a good reason, having the ability to bring her back was not the only reason he did it. Keeping a piece of her soul with him let him feel what she was feeling. He could not feel everything, just glimpses. Those glimpses were something special, to feel her power and bloodlust coursing through him was a treat. After he figured out immortality maybe he would work on his inability to truly love her. There had to be a way to change the curse his mother bestowed on him. If that's what Bella wanted then he would find a way. There was not much that Bella could ask for that he would not give to her. He would spend the rest of his life, as long as that may be, trying to reward her for everything she did for him. It was the least he could do for his most loyal lieutenant.

He allowed a small, content smile play across his lips as he mindlessly ran his fingers through Bella's thick hair. She was sound asleep, curled up in his arms under the emerald sheets of his bed. The fire was still roaring, keeping the winter cold at bay. He would need their quiet retreats more and more as they began to widen their reach through the rest of Europe. There was so much to do, but none of that mattered while they were locked away in his room. She was happy and that was what mattered right now.


	28. Chapter 28

p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Winter quickly began to melt into spring and time was flying as the dark lord's grasp on wizarding Britain began to tighten. It had been ten months since her escape and her dark lords return. They had accomplished so much in such little time. They were stronger now than they had ever been, and their adversaries fell swiftly at their hand. Even more exciting was their slow expansion into the rest of wizarding Europe. They had followers everywhere now, and it was only a matter of time before the dark lord himself was pulling the strings for the entire continent. To say these were exciting times was an understatement, to say the least. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"The Department of Magical Law Enforcement was now run entirely by death eaters, at its head was Dolohov. He was a skilled death eater and more than deserving of the title though Bellatrix did miss having him to run missions with. Not that there was a need for too many missions these days. With Dolohov's team, they were successfully rounding up the remaining members of the Order of the Phoenix and sentencing them to life in Azkaban. Heading up the trials and sentencing was none other than her old friend Crouch Jr. who she had taken under her wing when he was fresh out of Hogwarts. Their death eaters were everywhere and she had trained them all. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Bellatrix was still regularly training death eaters throughout the week but she was also making regular trips to the ministry to torture and kill the sentenced mudbloods. It was not as fun as hunting them down herself but it was safe and satisfied her bloodlust, even if only momentarily. She was the dark lord's right hand, his best and most loyal lieutenant, and second in command. Her name was feared among the wizarding world almost as much as her master's. The power was intoxicating and it only fed her madness. It was true she was unhinged, that's what made her so dangerous./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"For the most part, things were quiet right now, everything was moving smoothly which made her feel uneasy. It was always nerve racking when things continued to go off without a hitch. There was very little standing in there way now and she supposed she needed to stop being so paranoid, but it was just her nature. She had spent almost her entire adult life in servitude to the dark lord, how could she not worry when everything seemed to be going so well. One thing her master had taught her was to never let her guard down, and no matter how safe the world seemed to them she would never let her guard down. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"It was that very notion that had her reading over the worn pages of dark magic texts in the Malfoy's library, her favorite hiding spot. She spent so much time locked away down here that it could barely be called a hiding spot anymore, but it was still her favorite. Whenever she was not wrapped up in her other obligations she was usually somewhere with her nose in a book learning as much as she could about rare magic. Her book collection had grown steadily over the months, the dark lord bringing her new books when he saw fit. She could not be more grateful for how her master treated her. Her decades of faithful devotion and skill had been recognized and now she enjoyed the spoils of her hard work and devotion to her lord. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"She had no idea how long she had been hidden away in the library that evening when a sudden change in the air brought her back to reality. A wicked smile crossed her lips her dark brown eyes looking up from the worn pages of her book./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""My Lord," she said as her master's icy touch swept across her shoulders./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""My dearest Bella," the dark lord hissed darkly. His cloaked figure swept around the chair Bellatrix perched in as he came to stand in front of her, his hand outstretched waiting for her./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Bella's smile grew at the dark lord's gesture. She quickly marked her spot in her book, placing it on the table beside the high-backed emerald chair she sat in. Her heart raced slightly as she moved her hand up to rest in his before finally getting to her feet. Her eyes met his as her master brought her hand to his lips, kissing it ever so softly./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""Thank you for the newest book, my Lord," Bella cooed to her master./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""I am pleased that you have been enjoying it so thoroughly." He hissed back to her. "Soon it will be time to put your vast collection of curses to use, my most loyal lieutenant."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Bella's eyes widened as her master spoke, her heart racing with the anticipation of what her master had in store for her. The Dark Lord pulled her up gently by her outstretched arm, their bodies so close yet so far from one another. Her heart raced faster, it always did when she was so close to her master. His cold eyes looked right through her as his icy hand brushed her gaunt cheek./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Even after ten months, her body had not fully recovered from the years she spent locked away in Azkaban. In fact, she was becoming more and more sure that her time locked away waiting for her master's return did not only forever change her mind but her appearance as well. Her outward appearance now mirrored her inward appearance. The madness she hid so many years ago was now so clearly visible on the surface. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""But tonight, I have something special for you," his cold words rolled off his lips and into the air as he took Bella's hand and disapparated. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"The next moment they were outside, under the stars on this cool spring night. Bella's eyes quickly darted around to try and figure out where her master had taken them, but the scenery was not familiar. They were standing at the top of an old abandoned lighthouse on an empty beach. The salty air sending a shiver down her spine and causing her to tense up. Her hand, still being held in her master's tensed around his unintentionally as her other grasped her wand tightly. The smell of the sea flooded her with memories of Azkaban, for 13 years all she smelt was the sea and filth of the prison. She took a deep breath before finally looking up at her master, waiting to see what he could possibly have in store for her./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Without saying a word, he let go of her hand and headed into the small, rickety lighthouse. She trailed behind his ominous figure obediently, ready for anything her master could have in store. The rusted metal door creaked as he flung it open with his wand, leading them inside on a rusted metal platform. The stability of the lighthouse was in serious question, it was clear that it had been left unmaintained for at least a century. They carefully made their way down a flight of winding metal stairs to another landing where the Carrow twins waited. A man sat slumped over on the floor between the twins, bound by chains. His hair was matted and long, his head never lifted, obscuring any quick identification./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""Bella, I present to you Igor Karkaroff, who when captured by the ministry betrayed us. Maybe, more importantly, he betrayed you along with Rodolphus, Rabastian, and Junior for the torcher of the Longbottoms." Her master hissed, his voice cold and as ever emotionless. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Bella's hand clenched tighter around her wand, her face flushed with anger. This sad excuse for a death eater betrayed her master to get out of serving time in Azkaban. He should have been proud to wait in Azkaban for the Dark Lord's return. How dare he! How dare he turn on his fellow Death Eater's, how dare he turn on her. Bellatrix's rage was barely contained beneath the surface and she knew her master could feel it welling up inside her. It took every ounce of strength she had to not scream and curse him into madness. If her master was not standing next to her she would, but until she was given permission she would wait beside him./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""Your bloodlust really is magnificent," he spoke as his cold gaze looked straight through her. "But Bella this is my gift to you," his words cut through the salty air like a knife as he once again turned to look at the broken man on the floor./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"With one swift motion, his wand was up, and red-hot light spilled from it as he cast Bella's favorite curse. His voice was shrill and for once there was a hint of emotion behind it. Bella watched, her eyes wide with admiration and excitement as her master cursed her accuser. Igor's screams filled the dilapidated metal lighthouse, echoing through the cylindrical building. Tears poured from his eyes, as his tired bodied wreathed in his chains. Her master cursed him over and over, his rage more obvious with each curse until the screams began to subside. A sick smile was painted on Bella's lips as she watched her master avenge her, so many feelings bubbled beneath the surface that she could hardly contain herself. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""Avada Kedavra," he shouted as green light poured from the tip of his wand and struck the chained man square in the chest. As soon as the light hit him his lifeless body fell to the rusted metal floor with a deafening thud./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"With Karkaroff dead the Dark Lord dismissed the Carrow twins with a wave of his hand. They disapparated quickly as the obedient servants they were. Silence settled into the lighthouse, the only sound left was the ocean waves breaking outside. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"The Dark Lord turned swiftly, his eyes meeting her own, a new look hiding behind them. Bella's mind raced wondering what new emotion was showing itself to her. Her master pulled a small, leather, emerald box out from his robes and handed it to her./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""Open it," he hissed coolly./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Without hesitation, Bella opened the box to reveal a silver raven skull that was attached to a fine silver ring./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""It's beautiful my Lord," she cooed lovingly./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""I'm glad you think so, but my dear Bella this is so much more than just a new trinket for you to wear." He explained as his hand met her hand that was holding the open box. "You see ever since I created your Horcrux I have been planning on making myself another one. The only safe place I could think to keep my next Horcrux would be with my most faithful servant."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"Bella's eyes widened as he spoke, almost unable to believe the word's that came from his mouth./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;""I know that with you no harm would ever come to this piece of me, just as you know no harm will ever come to yours as it will never leave my hand." As he spoke he lifted his wand to his chest and delicately pulled a small fragment of the remnants of his soul out and placed it carefully within the ring in Bellatrix's hands. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;" /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: normal;"span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"When he was finally finished creating his newest Horcrux he removed the ring from the box and carefully took her right hand, sliding it on to her ring finger. It took every ounce of her will to not tear up. Nothing in her life had ever meant so much to her. She was beyond speechless, all she could do was to look at her master with loving admiration. Nothing would ever happen to her master as long as she was around./span/p 


End file.
